Effect of quercetin against dichlorvos induced nephrotoxicity in rats

This study was carried out to determine the effect of quercetin against renal injury induced by dichlorvos (DDVP) in rats. Rats were randomly assigned to control, DDVP-treated (7.2 mg/kg bw), three different doses of quercetin-treated (2 mg/kg bw, 10 mg/kg bw, 50 mg/kg bw) and different doses of quercetin plus DDVP-treated groups. DDVP was administered daily to rats through their drinking water, and quercetin was administered by intragastric gavage for 90 days. By the end of the 90th day in the DDVP-treated group, the following indices significantly increased compared with the control (P < 0.01): activities of catalase, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase; level of malondialdehyde in kidney tissues; serum levels of creatinine and urea nitrogen; and level of β2-microglobulin, level of retinol-conjugated protein, and activity of N-acetyl-β-d-glucosaminidase in urine; by contrast, urine uric acid levels significantly decreased. However, in the quercetin (50 mg/kg bw) plus DDVP group, the aforementioned indices were significantly decreased compared with the DDVP-treated group (P < 0.05), except the urine uric acid levels were significantly increased (P < 0.05). Thus, rat exposure to DDVP caused renal injury, including renal tubular, glomerular filtration, and oxidative stress. These toxic effects were also regulated by high-dose quercetin. Histopathological examination revealed that exposure to DDVP induced extensive cell vacuolar denaturation, but milder histopathological alterations in the kidney tissues of rats co-treated with DDVP and quercetin (50 mg/kg bw) were observed. These results indicated that quercetin at 50 mg/kg bw can partly prevent the kidney injury induced by DDVP.