Abstract

Cadmium (Cd) is a ubiquitous contaminant of dietary products and natural surroundings and has been listed as one of the Top 20 Hazardous Substances by ATSDR. Cd is a cumulative toxicant. Once absorbed, it is principally deposited in liver and kidney. Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnONPs) are widely incorporated as a food additive in animal diets. In order to optimize the beneficial effects of ZnONPs and minimize any resultant environmental pollution, ZnONPs significantly attenuated cadmium chloride (CdCl2)-induced hepatic toxicity. This work aimed to investigate the protective effect of ZnONPs against hepatic toxicity induced by CdCl2. Twenty male adult rats weighing from 150 ± 20 g were randomly allocated into 4 groups (5rats/each); control, CdCl2, ZnONPs and CdCl2 and ZnONPs treated groups. Results revealed that treatment with ZnONPs showed reduction of oxidative stress caused by CdCl2. However, ZnONPs attenuated previous toxicity through improvement of liver enzymes including LDH, ALP, AST, ALT, antioxidant markers as CAT, GSH, MDA, NRF2 and MT. CdCl2 and ZnONPs treated group is the best group to overcome Cd-induced hepatotoxicity. It could be concluded that co-administration of ZnONPs with CdCl2 has a positive cooperative effect on liver and ZnONPs significantly attenuate CdCl2-induced damage in the liver through the reduction of oxidative stress.

Key words: Zinc oxide nanoparticles, Cadmium chloride, Hepatotoxicity.