Protective effects of caffeic acid phenethyl ester on dose-dependent intoxication of rats with paraquat

Paraquat (PQ; 1,1'dimethyl-bipyridilium 4,4'-dichloride), which is used extensively throughout the world, is highly toxic to humans. We aimed to investigate the protective effects of different doses of caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) on PQ-intoxicated rats.

A total of 80 rats were divided into the following eight groups, comprising 10 rats in each group: group 1: control; group 2: administered with CAPE (10 µmol/kg); group 3: administered with 15 mg/kg PQ (PQ15 group); group 4: administered with 30 mg/kg PQ (PQ30 group); group 5: administered with 45 mg/kg PQ (PQ45 group); group 6: administered with 15 mg/kg PQ + CAPE; group 7: administered with 30 mg/kg PQ + CAPE and group 8: administered with 45 mg/kg PQ + CAPE. Both PQ and CAPE were injected intraperitoneally. Pancreatic tissue was examined with both haematoxylin and eosin and immunochemical staining.

The ratio of the immunohistochemical staining area to the total pancreatic area of the β cells revealed that statistically significant differences were observed only between the PQ and PQ + CAPE groups (p < 0.05).

The evaluation of the data suggests that CAPE can be used to prevent acute effects of PQ intoxication.