Department of Ophthalmology, Recep Tayyip Erdogan University, Rize, Turkey.
Department of Biochemistry, Recep Tayyip Erdogan University, Rize, Turkey.
Cells Tissues Organs. 2024;213(3):255-264. doi: 10.1159/000532011. Epub 2023 Jul 28.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of cancer patients receive radiotherapy treatment. Oxidative stress is observed in healthy tissues due to irradiation exposure. The present study is the first to address the effects of Vaccinium myrtillus (whortleberry, WB) against the effects of X-ray irradiation on retinal tissue. Twenty-four Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly allocated into 4 groups: (1) control group: rats without any treatment, (2) X-ray irradiation group: 8 Gray (Gy) RT for 2 days, (3) 100 mg WB extract + X-ray irradiation group: 8 Gy irradiation for 2 days and followed by intraperitoneal (IP) WB extract (100 mg/kg) supplementation for 10 days, (4) 200 mg WB extract + X-ray irradiation group: 8 Gy irradiation for 2 days and followed by IP WB extract (200 mg/kg) supplementation for 10 days. Eyes were enucleated on the 10th day after RT for histopathological, immunohistochemical (8-hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine [8-OHdG], endothelial nitric oxide synthase [eNOS]), and biochemical analyses (glutathione peroxidase [GSH], and malondialdehyde [MDA]). The GSH levels significantly decreased and MDA levels and 8-OHdG staining increased after X-ray irradiation compared to the control group. Combined X-ray irradiation + WB treatment significantly increased GSH levels and significantly decreased MDA production and 8-OHdG staining. However, eNOS staining was not affected in any of the groups. Besides, X-ray irradiation significantly increased cell losses and edematous areas. The WB significantly reversed the cellular damage in ganglion cells, inner nuclear, and outer nuclear layers in quantitative analyses. The X-ray irradiation caused significant retinal impairment, and additional WB therapy provided protective effects against radiation-induced retinopathy. These results may suggest WB extract as an adjuvant therapy to reverse retinal impairments after X-ray irradiation.
每年都有成千上万的癌症患者接受放射治疗。由于辐照暴露，健康组织中会观察到氧化应激。本研究首次探讨了越桔（蓝莓，WB）对 X 射线照射视网膜组织的影响。将 24 只 Sprague-Dawley 大鼠随机分为 4 组：（1）对照组：未经任何治疗的大鼠，（2）X 射线照射组：2 天内接受 8 戈瑞（Gy）RT，（3）100mg WB 提取物+X 射线照射组：2 天内接受 8Gy 照射，随后腹腔内（IP）给予 WB 提取物（100mg/kg）补充 10 天，（4）200mg WB 提取物+X 射线照射组：2 天内接受 8Gy 照射，随后腹腔内（IP）给予 WB 提取物（200mg/kg）补充 10 天。RT 后第 10 天眼球取出进行组织病理学、免疫组织化学（8-羟基-2'-脱氧鸟苷[8-OHdG]、内皮型一氧化氮合酶[eNOS]）和生化分析（谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶[GSH]、丙二醛[MDA]）。与对照组相比，X 射线照射后 GSH 水平显著降低，MDA 水平和 8-OHdG 染色增加。联合 X 射线照射+WB 治疗可显著提高 GSH 水平，显著降低 MDA 生成和 8-OHdG 染色。然而，各组的 eNOS 染色均无影响。此外，X 射线照射显著增加细胞丢失和水肿区。WB 可显著逆转定量分析中神经节细胞、内核层和外核层的细胞损伤。X 射线照射导致明显的视网膜损伤，额外的 WB 治疗对放射诱导的视网膜病变提供保护作用。这些结果可能表明 WB 提取物作为一种辅助治疗方法，可逆转 X 射线照射后的视网膜损伤。
