Prophylactic effect of curcumin against long-term and high-dose tartrazine-induced structural, biochemical, and genetic alteration in male rats

Abstract

Abstract Background and aim: Food coloring agents uses in food remain controversial because many adverse effects are encountered. Therefore, the objective of the present study was to investigate whether curcumin could protect against oxidative stress, organ damage, and genotoxic effects induced by different doses of tartrazine, a synthetic food coloring agent, in male rats. Experimental procedure: Six groups, were established as follows: Group 1 represented the control. Groups 2 and 3 were given tartrazine orally, with a daily dosage of 10 and 20 mg/kg, respectively. Group 4 was given curcumin orally, with a daily dose of 50 mg/kg b.wt. Groups 5 and 6 were orally co-treated with daily doses of 10 and 20 mg/kg tartrazine and 50 mg/kg curcumin, respectively. Results and Conclusion: The administration of low and high dose tartrazine for 60 days significantly increased the following parameters: body weight; levels of AST, ALT, urea, creatinine, reactive oxygen species, and lipid peroxidation; and reduced organ weight (liver, kidneys, and testes); concentrations of total protein, albumin, catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), total testosterone, free testosterone, and sperm count, motility, and viability. Furthermore, tartrazine induced histopathological alterations and DNA damage in hepatic, renal and testicular tissues. Co-treatment of rats with curcumin and tartrazine revealed milder pathological alterations compared to rats treated with tartrazine alone. Taken together, this study showed that curcumin ameliorated the tartrazine-induced toxicity in the liver, kidney, and testis tissues rats. Therefore, the consumption of curcumin is encouraged daily to counteract the effects of foods containing tartrazine. Novelty and Impact: Curcumin can restore antioxidant balance within cells and efficiently reduce the oxidative stress triggered by tartrazine administration. Its antioxidant properties can enhance organ protection against tartrazine-induced toxicity. As low-dose tartrazine can be tolerated as evidenced by the current study, we recommend only a restriction of its use. This study stressed that low dosages of tartrazine, when combined with antioxidant supplements like curcumin, may not be harmful if taken occasionally. List of abbreviations Tartazine: TAR; Curcumin: CUR; Glutathione: GSH Catalase: CAT; Superoxide dismutase: SOD; Reactive oxygen species: ROS; Malondialdehyde: MDA