THE PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF MILK OF THISTLE AGAINST DOXORUBICIN OR METHOTREXATE INDUCED CARDIOTOXICITY

Area of Science:

• Cardiovascular Research
• Pharmacology
• Oncology

Background:

• Doxorubicin (DOX) and Methotrexate (MXT) are vital anticancer drugs with dose-limiting cardiotoxicity.
• Milk thistle extract (MTE) possesses known antioxidant and cytoprotective effects.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the protective role of MTE against DOX- or MXT-induced cardiac damage in a rat model.
• To evaluate MTE's efficacy in preventing chemotherapy-induced cardiotoxicity.

Main Methods:

• A 7-day study involving 35 rats divided into five groups: control, DOX alone, MXT alone, DOX+MTE, and MXT+MTE.
• Administration of DOX (IP) or MXT (oral) with or without MTE (oral).
• Histopathological examination of cardiac tissue at the study's conclusion.

Main Results:

• DOX and MXT induced significant cardiotoxicity, characterized by inflammation and structural damage.
• MTE pretreatment substantially protected cardiac architecture against chemotherapy-induced damage.
• Reduced inflammatory cell infiltration was observed in MTE-treated groups.

Conclusions:

• MTE demonstrates marked cardioprotective potential when co-administered with DOX or MXT.
• MTE effectively reduces chemotherapy-induced cardiac inflammation and tissue damage.
• MTE may serve as a valuable adjunct therapy to prevent cardiac complications in cancer patients receiving DOX or MXT.