Abstract
Background
Nanomedicine contributes to the efficiency of pharmacological treatments and progresses rapidly. The present study was designed to produce exopolysaccharide (BSEPS) from Bacillus subtilis sp. strain reported in our previous study was further characterized, and its BSEPS for synthesis of the nanoparticle Ag-BSEPS using microwave heating to determine the possible effects of a prepared solution containing Ag-BSEPS versus thioacetamide (TAA) evoked liver fibrosis in Wister albino rats. Nanoparticles with silver (Ag) core have been synthesized in an aqueous solution after exposure of BSEPS to periodate oxidation. Animals were split into four groups: I - control rats, water ad libitum for 6 weeks; II - rats were injected with TAA 200 mg/kg-1 3 times/week for 4 weeks IP; III - Ag-BSEPS 100 mg/kg-1 IP twice a week for 6 weeks; and IV - TAA, as group II followed by Ag-BSEPS as group III. The antifibrotic effects of Ag-BSEPS were appraised by determining different hepatotoxicity indices, oxidative stress, and inflammatory and liver fibrosis markers.
Results
Nanoparticles were obtained with a diameter size range of 50–100 nm characterized by SEM and TEM without using any harmful reagents. Results evinced considerably reduced activity of liver functions such as transaminases (AST, ALT), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) in the group which received TAA followed by Ag-BSEPS compared to the other group which received only TAA. In the current results, the administration of Ag-BSEPS showed an improvement in the proinflammatory cytokines. On the contrary, the antioxidant enzymes in liver homogenates revealed significant improvement (concentration of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase (CAT) increases) in animals with TAA-induced liver damage followed by Ag-BSEPS. Moreover, the activities of the fibrotic markers transforming growth factor-beta 1(TGF-β1) and type III pro-collagen (PCIII) were increased in liver tissues in the group which was given TAA alone as compared to the controls. The percentage of fibrosis of hepatic tissue had a positive correlation with the levels of PCIII and TGF-β1, followed by Ag-BSEPS compared to the TAA group without nanocomposite treatment. Microscopic examinations revealed inhibitory effects of Ag-BSEPS on inflammatory changes and deterrent of liver fibrosis.
Conclusion
It was suggested that the biochemical and histological amelioration observed in Ag-BSEPS (100 mg/kg-1 twice a week for 6 weeks) treated the fibrotic rats.
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