Dynamics study on the role of curcumin on TGF-β1 expression and pathological changes in acute paraquat poisoned rats

Role of curcumin on TGF-β1 expression and pathological changes in acute paraquat (PQ) poisoned rats were investigated. Forty-eight SD rats were divided into three groups: control group, PQ group, and PQ + curcumin group, with 16 rats in each group. PQ group rats received the lavagation of PQ every day, PQ + curcumin group was given the lavagation of curcumin treatment on the basis of the PQ group. Control group received the lavagation of physiological saline. The body weight of rats was recorded every day. Six rats were randomly selected on the 1st, 3rd and 7th day after treatment from each group and sacrificed by cervical dislocation. The blood and liver tissues of each rat were collected. The morphology change of the liver tissue was observed by hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. The expression level of TGF-β1 in the liver tissue was detected by western blot analysis and RT-qPCR. The blood samples were sent to the inspection section of the hospital for the detection of reactive oxygen species (ROS), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). On the 1st day after poisoning, the liver cells of PQ rats had obvious edema; obvious fatty degeneration was observed on the 3rd day; and large number of cavities appeared on the 7th day due to necrosis. For the PQ + curcumin group, liver cell edema appeared on the 3rd day, and mild swelling of liver cells was observed on the 7th day. Compared with the control group, the expression of TGF-β1 was increased in the PQ group. The TGF-β1 level in PQ + curcumin group rats reached the peak on the 3rd day, then decreased, and it was lower than those in PQ group. The level of ROS, ALT, AST, MDA of the rats in PQ + curcumin group reached the highest value on the 3rd day, while the level of SOD reached the lowest value; furthermore, the level of ROS, ALT, AST, MDA was lower than that in PQ group, while the level of SOD was higher than that of the PQ group. The results showed that curcumin can effectively inhibit the expression of TGF-β1, prevent PQ-induced liver cell oxidative damage and play an important role in the protection of liver function.