Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2023;16(1):57-63.
doi: 10.2174/1874471015666220901142858.

Histopathological Evaluation of Nanocurcumin for Mitigation of Radiation- Induced Small Intestine Injury

Alireza Ghanbarzadeh  1 , Bagher Farhood  2   3 , Farshid Alazmani Noodeh  4 , Reza Mosaed  5 , Gholamreza Hassanzadeh  6 , Hamed Bagheri  1   7 , Masoud Najafi  8
Affiliations
Free article

Histopathological Evaluation of Nanocurcumin for Mitigation of Radiation- Induced Small Intestine Injury

Alireza Ghanbarzadeh et al. Curr Radiopharm. 2023.
Free article

Abstract

Aim: In the current study, we aimed to mitigate radiation-induced small intestinal toxicity using post-irradiation treatment with nano-micelle curcumin.

Background: Small intestine is one of the most radiosensitive organs within the body. Wholebody exposure to an acute dose of ionizing radiation may lead to severe injuries to this tissue and may even cause death after some weeks.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate histopathological changes in the small intestine following whole-body irradiation and treatment with nanocurcumin.

Materials and methods: Forty male Nordic Medical Research Institute mice were grouped into control, treatment with 100 mg/kg nano-micelle curcumin, whole-body irradiation with cobalt-60 gamma-rays (dose rate of 60 cGy/min and a single dose of 7 Gy), and treatment with 100 mg/kg nano-micelle curcumin 1 day after whole-body irradiation for 4 weeks. Afterward, all mice were sacrificed for histopathological evaluation of their small intestinal tissues.

Results: Irradiation led to severe damage to villi, crypts, glands as well as vessels, leading to bleeding. Administration of nano-micelle curcumin after whole-body irradiation showed a statistically significant improvement in radiation toxicity of the duodenum, jejunum and ileum (including a reduction in infiltration of polymorphonuclear cells, villi length shortening, goblet cells injury, Lieberkühn glands injury and bleeding). Although treatment with nano-micelle curcumin showed increased bleeding in the ileum for non-irradiated mice, its administration after irradiation was able to reduce radiation-induced bleeding in the ileum.

Conclusion: Treatment with nano-micelle curcumin may be useful for mitigation of radiationinduced gastrointestinal system toxicity via suppression of inflammatory cells' infiltration and protection against villi and crypt shortening.

Keywords: Nano-micelle curcumin; acute radiation syndrome; injury; mitigation; radiation; small intestine.

PubMed Disclaimer