Antioxidant Effect of Aronia Melanocarpa Extract after Doxorubicin Treatment

PAVLOVA, V., I. SAINOVA, B. ALEXIEVA, I. VALKOVA, Tz. MARKOVA and E. NIKOLOVA, 2014. Antioxidant effect of Aronia melanocarpa extract after doxorubicin treatment. Bulg. J. Agric. Sci., Supplement 1: 188–192 Doxorubicin is one of the most effective chemotherapeutic agents in current use. However, its therapeutic value is limited by its toxicity to non-targeted tissues. Although the mechanisms of this toxicity are not fully elucidated, oxidative stress appears to be involved. Aronia melanocarpa (Black chokeberry) has shown a high content of polyphenol compounds and possesses one of the highest antioxidant activities among fruits. We investigated the possible protective effect of total extract from this medicinal plant against Doxorubicin-induced toxicity and oxidative stress. The administration of Doxorubicin (20 mg/kg i. p.) to Balb/c experimental mice caused signifi cant decrease of tissue glutathione level in liver, heart and small intestine, as well as marked histo-pathological changes, examined by light microscopy. These biochemical and histological alterations were effectively attenuated on pretreatment with Aronia melanocarpa total extract. We concluded that the protective action of Aronia melanocarpa total extract is due to the enhancement of tissue glutathione level, which might have important cytoprotective effects on oxidative stress induced by Doxorubicin treatment.