Abstract
BACKGROUND: Alcohol consumption is capable of producing free radicals and inducing disturbance in body antioxidant. Falcaria vulgaris (F. vulgaris) is a vegetable and it has beneficial antioxidant effects. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty-eight Wistar rats were divided randomly into eight groups (n = 6): control normal (saline) and ethanol (5g EtOH/kg body weight/24h) control groups, F. vulgaris groups (50, 100, and 150mg/kg), and F. vulgaris + ethanol treated groups (50, 100, and 150mg/kg). Treatments were administered intraperitoneally and through gavage daily for 12 weeks. Parameters related to the function and the histology of the kidneys were evaluated and statistically analyzed from kidney and blood serum samples with respect to the groups. RESULTS: Ethanol administration increased significantly Bowman's space, qualitative histopathology indices, kidney malondialdehyde (MDA) level, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, and nitrite oxide levels and decreased significantly total antioxidant capacity (TAC) level and diameter and number of renal corpuscles compared to that in the control normal group (P < 0.001). The F. vulgaris and F. vulgaris + ethanol treatments in a dose-dependent manner reduced significantly Bowman's space, qualitative histopathology indices, kidney MDA level, BUN, creatinine, and nitrite oxide levels and increased significantly TAC level and diameter and number of renal corpuscles compared to that in the ethanol normal group (P < 0.001). CONCLUSION: It seems that F. vulgaris administration in a dose-dependent manner improved kidney injury induced by ethanol in rats.