ABSTRACT
Cardiotoxicity induced by anticancer drug; doxorubicin (DOX) is a limiting factor for its prolonged use in chemotherapy. No effective drug is currently available to prevent DOX induced cardiomyopathy. Ganoderma lucidum is highly valued medicinal mushroom used in traditional medicine. Mycelia biomasses are considered as alternate sources of mushroom bioactive compounds. We examined the effect of bioactive extract of G. lucidum mycelia biomass (GLME) to prevent cardiotoxicity induced by DOX in rats using a cumulative dose 18 mg/kg body wt. GLME was administered to animals at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg body wt. once daily for five days prior to DOX administration and continued for three more days. Animals were sacrificed 24 h after the last dose of drug. Activities of creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), endogenous antioxidant status, oxidative stress markers, electrocardiograph (ECG) and haematological parameters were evaluated. DOX administration drastically elevated CK, LDH, myocardial peroxidation and oxidative stress and significantly lowered endogenous antioxidant activity. GLME administration attenuated elevated levels of CK, LDH and oxidative stress and also ameliorated alterations in haematological and ECG parameters. Results revealed that bioactive extract of G. lucidum mycelia imparted significant protection against DOX induced cardiomyopathy suggesting the potential therapeutic significance of G. lucidum mycelia bioactives to alleviate DOX induced cardiomyopathy.
ABSTRACT
Liver is a vital organ of the body that manages metabolic disposition of drugs and other foreign substances. Liver damage is one of the major causes of human mortality. Natural products including mushrooms have gained researchers’ attention as the source of for drugs to treat liver diseases. In this context, here, we examined hepatoprotective activity of ethanolic extracts of the fruiting bodies and mycelia of the Elm oyster Hypsizygus ulmarius. Carbon tetrachloride was used to induce hepatic injury and silymarin served as standard drug. Hepatoprotection was evaluated by determining the activities of liver function enzymes, antioxidant status and the histopathological changes in liver tissue of experimental animals. Treatment with the extracts decreased elevated liver function enzymes, such as serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase, serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase and alkaline phosphatase and also enhanced depleted antioxidant levels in liver tissue. The histopathological observations supported these findings. The results suggested the potential use of elm oyster mushroom to prevent liver disorders.