Pancreatic, hepatic, and renal histopatholological changes in thymoquinone- treated streptozotocin-induced diabetic male rats.

Abstract

The present study has been conducted to investigate the potency of thymoquinone (TQ) in ameleorating the pathological changes of pancreas, liver, and kidneys in streptozotocin-induced diabetic male rats. Sixty five adult male rats (aged 56 days and weighted 138±8.8g) were subjected to five equal groups (13 male rats each), non-diabetic control and four diabetic groups. Diabetes was induced by single injection with streptozotocin (60 mg/kg b.w., i.p.). Rats ≥ 200 mg/dl of blood glucose were used as diabetic. Diabetic groups (DM, TQ50, TQ100, and DMI) were drenched with drinking water, TQ (50 mg/kg, bw), TQ (100 mg/kg, bw), or injected with insulin (4 IU/animal), respectively, for 6 weeks. Twenty four hours after the last day of experiment, male rats has been anaesthesized, sacrificed, and pancreatic, liver, and kidney tissues were removed and fixed in formalin (10%) for histopathological examination. Histological findings of thymoquinone treated (TQ50 and TQ100 groups) pancreases revealed normal cellularity of islets of Langerhans and normal exocrine tissue except few congestion, whereas those obtained from non treated diabetic rats (DM group) showed complet impairment of some islands and highly destructed of others. Normal hepatic architecture with the appearance of radiating shape around the central vein, has been shown in the section obtained from thymoquinone treated diabetic rats (TQ50 and TQ100 groups) except few congestion, obvious regeneration and mitotic division in the nuclei of hepatocytes. Sections obtained from non treated diabetic male rats (DM group) showed sever congestion, large thrombi in the hepatic tissue, and loss of hepatic architecture with sever hemorrhage, degeneration in hepatocytes, and dilation of sinusoids. Section obtained from kidneys of thymoquinone treated diabetic rats (TQ50 and TQ100 groups) reveales normal renal convoluted tubules with normal epithelium of the tubules and high cellularity of glomeruli. Whearas those obtained from non treated diabetic male rats (DM group) revealed dilation of renal convoluted tubules with necrosis in the epithelium of the tubules and sever hemorrhage in the renal tissue. It can be concluded that drenching of 100 mg/kg of TQ for 6 weeks has potent ameliorating and regenerative effect of pancreas, liver, and kidneys in experimentally-induced diabetic male rats.