Protective Effects of Crocin Against Methotrexate-Induced Hepatotoxicity in Adult Male Albino Rats: Histological, Immunohistochemical, and Biochemical Study

BACKGROUND

Among the many known adverse effects of methotrexate (MTX), hepatotoxicity stands out as a major drawback that limits its therapeutic applicability. There is growing evidence that crocin has antioxidant, anti-hyperglycemic, cardioprotective, and anti-inflammatory effects. This study's aim is to evaluate the potential protective effect of crocin against MTX-induced liver damage in rats using biochemical, histological, and immunohistochemical analyses.

METHODS

Twenty-four adult male albino rats were split into four groups at random (six rats/group) as follows: normal control (saline, intraperitoneal (i.p.) injections), crocin-treated (100 mg/kg daily for 14 days, i.p.), MTX-treated (20 mg/kg single i.p. injection on day 15), and crocin/MTX-treated groups (crocin 100 mg/kg/day for 14 days, i.p. + MTX 20 mg/kg single i.p. injection on day 15). On day 16 of the experiment, blood and tissue specimens were used to assess the liver functions, oxidative stress markers, transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-β1), caspase-3, BCL-2-associated X protein (BAX), and B-cell lymphoma 2 (BCL-2) expression.

RESULTS

The results of the current research revealed the protective actions of crocin against MTX-induced hepatotoxicity. Our results showed that crocin possesses antioxidants (decrease malondialdehyde (MDA), increase glutathione (GSH) levels, and enhance catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) enzymatic activity), anti-fibrotic (decrease TGF-β1), and anti-apoptotic (decrease BAX and caspase-3 expression while increase BCL-2) actions in liver. Moreover, crocin administration along with MTX restores the normal histological structure of hepatic tissues.

CONCLUSION

 The data presented in the current study using an in vivo animal model support the notion that crocin should be further studied in humans to assess its potential hepatoprotective effects against MTX-induced liver damage.

RETRACTION NOTE: Histopathological and biomedical parameters determination in the protective effect of crocin on hepatotoxicity induced by methotrexate in rats

This paper was published in the Journal of Herbmed Pharmacology in 2020 (doi: 10.15171/jhp.2020.07) (1). Based on an email received from the team of young researchers recently, we were informed that the results of this article have been published in another study (2), which is considered ethical misconduct. This issue was investigated by the editorial team of the Journal of Herbmed Pharmacology. As a result, based on the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) guidelines, the editors decided to retract this paper. The authors were informed and advised on this serious ethical breach. This article has been retracted at the request of the corresponding author. The retracted article will remain online to maintain the scholarly record, but it will be watermarked on each page as ‘retracted’. References 1. Jalili C, Abdolmaleki A, Roshankhah S, Salahshoor MR. Histopathological and biomedical parameters determination in the protective effect of crocin on hepatotoxicity induced by methotrexate in rats. J Herbmed Pharmacol. 2020;9(1):48-54. doi: 10.15171/jhp.2020.07. 2. Salahshoor MR, Abdolmaleki A, Jalili C, Roshankhah S, Ziapour A. Determination of histopathological and biomedical parameters in protective effects of Petroselinum crispum on hepatotoxicity induced by dichlorvos in male Wistar rats. Comp Clin Path. 2020;29(2):501-9. doi: 10.1007/s00580-019-03087-7.