Dendropanax morbifera Leveille extract ameliorates cesium-induced inflammation in the kidney and decreases antioxidant enzyme levels in the hippocampus

Backgrounds: In this study, we investigated the effects of Dendropanax morbifera Leveille leaf extract (DML) on cesium-exposed kidneys and hippocampi of rats. Methods: Seven-week-old Sprague-Dawley rats received a daily oral dose of 500 mg/kg cesium chloride and/or DML (30, 100, and 300 mg/kg) for 4 weeks. Animals were killed 2 h after the last cesium chloride and/or DML treatment. Blood, liver, and kidney cesium levels were assessed by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. In addition, inflammatory parameters of the kidney such as inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), interleukin (IL)-1 beta, and IL-6 levels were measured by western blot analysis, and activity of antioxidant enzymes such as Cu, Zn-superoxide dismutase (SOD1), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) was assessed in the hippocampus. Results: Cesium chloride treatment significantly increased the levels of cesium in blood, and in the kidney and liver by 200 times or more, but the administration of DML did not show any significant effect on the levels of cesium in any tissue. Nevertheless, the administration of DML significantly ameliorated the cesium-induced increase in iNOS, COX-2, TNF-alpha, IL-1 beta, and IL-6 levels in the kidney in a dose-dependent manner. In addition, the administration of DML reversed the cesium-induced decrease in the levels of antioxidant enzymes such as SOD1 and GPx, but not of CAT, in the hippocampus. Conclusion: These results suggest that DML reduces the cesium-induced inflammatory response in the kidney and the hippocampal decrease in antioxidant enzymes levels, although it could not decrease the accumulation of cesium in the blood, kidney, and liver.