The effects of lycopene on intestinal injury due to methotrexate in rats

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of lycopene (Lyc) on methotrexate (Mtx)-induced intestinal damage in rats.

Twenty-eight male Sprague Dawley rats were divided into four equal groups: control, Mtx, Lyc, and Mtx-L.

Rats were given only the vehicle. Lyc group: Rats were given Lyc (10 mg/kg) with corn oil by oral gavage for 10 days. Mtx group: Rats were injected intraperitoneally with a single dose of 20 mg/kg of Mtx and given corn oil by oral gavage. Mtx-L group: Rats were treated with Lyc (10 mg/kg) for 10 days after a single dose of Mtx (20 mg/kg). All of the rats were euthanized using terminal anesthesia, and the intestinal tissues were removed for histological examination and for pro-inflammatory cytokine measurement (tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β)), total oxidative status (TOS), total antioxidant capacity (TAC), and oxidative stress index (OSI).

Mtx administration increased histopathological damage and increased TNF-α, IL-1β, TOS, TAC, and OSI levels in the small intestine tissues. Lyc therapy applied to the Mtx-L group provided significant improvement in all parameters of histopathological damage to the small intestine and significantly reduced the levels of IL-1β, TOS, and OSI in the intestinal tissues.

The results of this study indicate that Lyc might be useful for protecting intestinal damage induced by Mtx in rats by reducing the increased oxidative stress and pro-inflammatory cytokine (IL-1β) levels.