Prophylactic effect of methylprednisolone against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in rats

Male Sprague-Dawley rats were intravenously injected with 6.5 mg/kg of cisplatin combined with a subcutaneous methylprednisolone (MP) injection to study the prophylactic effects of steroid hormone on cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity. In Expt. 1, the rats were injected twice with either 10, 20 or 50 mg/kg of MP4 and 0 h prior to the cisplatin injection and in Expt. 2, they were given a single injection of 100 mg/kg of MP either 24, 4, 2 or 0 h prior to the cisplatin injection. In Expt. 1, elevations of the BUN and serum creatinine levels caused by the cisplatin were dose-dependently inhibited by the administration of MP. In the second experiment, BUN and serum creatinine levels in rats which were pretreated with MP 4 or 2 h prior to the cisplatin injection were significantly lower than those in rats which received cisplatin alone. Our preliminary results suggest that pretreatment with MP is an effective means of protection against cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity.