The protective effects of curcumin on intestine and remote organs against mesenteric ischemia/reperfusion injury.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Mesenteric ischemia/reperfusion injury induces a systemic response and releases harmful substances that may affect distant organs such as the lung, liver and kidney. We designed this study to determine if curcumin has protective effects against mesenteric ischemia/reperfusion injury and mesenteric ischemia/reperfusion-induced intestinal and distant organ injury.

METHODS: Forty Wistar-Albino rats were divided into four groups as: sham, control, ischemia/reperfusion, and ischemia/reperfusion+curcumin. The ischemia/reperfusion and ischemia/reperfusion+curcumin groups were subjected to mesenteric arterial ischemia for 30 minutes and reperfusion for 1 hour. The control and ischemia/reperfusion+curcumin groups were administered curcumin (200 mg/kg, single dose) via oral gavage 15 min before the injury insult. Blood and pulmonary, hepatic and kidney tissue specimens were obtained to measure serum malondialdehyde and total antioxidant capacity, tissue levels of total antioxidant capacity, total oxidative status, and oxidative stress index. In addition, intestine, pulmonary, hepatic, and kidney tissue specimens were obtained for the evaluation of histopathological changes.

RESULTS: The histopathological injury scores of the intestine and distant organs were significantly higher in the ischemia/reperfusion group; these injuries were prevented by curcumin in the ischemia/reperfusion+curcumin group. In the ischemia/reperfusion group, a significant increase in serum malondialdehyde levels was determined, which was prevented with curcumin pretreatment in the ischemia/reperfusion+curcumin group. Total antioxidant capacity levels were significantly supported by curcumin pretreatment in the control and ischemia/reperfusion+curcumin groups.

CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that curcumin ameliorates histopathological damage in the intestine and distant organs against mesenteric ischemia/reperfusion injury.