Exploring the role of polysaccharides in mitigating organ damage caused by pesticide-induced toxicity: A systematic review and meta-analysis of in vivo studies

Abstract

Although polysaccharides have demonstrated potential in alleviating dysbiosis, the overall impact of polysaccharides on minimizing oxidative stress and organ damage in vivo has not been thoroughly investigated. The aim of this study was to investigate the comprehensive effects of polysaccharides in mitigating pesticide toxicity in animal studies, focusing on biomarkers related to oxidative stress, antioxidant activity, kidney injury, lipid profiles, liver function, and the preservation of liver and kidney weights. A systematic search was conducted across nine indexed databases, including PubMed, Cochrane CENTRAL, Taylor & Francis, Scopus, Sage, EBSCO, ProQuest, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar. Rayyan.ai was used to screen in vivo studies that met the predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria. The quality of the selected in vivo studies was evaluated using SYRCLE's Risk of Bias tool, specifically designed for animal studies. Thirteen randomized animal studies, comprising 330 mice and rats, were included in the analysis. The findings revealed that polysaccharides significantly increased antioxidant levels, including catalase (CAT) (p<0.00001), superoxide dismutase (SOD) (p<0.00001), glutathione peroxidase (GPx) (p<0.00001), and reduced glutathione (GSH) (p<0.00001). Polysaccharides also significantly reduced oxidative stress markers, such as malondialdehyde (MDA) (p<0.00001) and nitric oxide (NO) (p<0.0001), as well as kidney injury biomarkers, including serum creatinine (p<0.00001) and urea (p<0.00001). Additionally, improvements in lipid profiles were observed, with significant reductions in triglycerides (TG) (p=0.04) and total cholesterol (TC) (p<0.00001). However, there were no significant differences in high-density lipoprotein (HDL) (p=0.28) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) (p=0.32) levels. Polysaccharides significantly alleviate liver biomarkers, including aspartate transaminase (AST) (p<0.0001), alanine transaminase (ALT) (p<0.005), and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) (p<0.0001). Polysaccharides also contributed to the maintenance of liver weight (p=0.009), although no significant differences were observed in kidney weights (p=0.81). The study highlights that polysaccharides exert significant effects in enhancing antioxidant levels, reducing oxidative stress and organ damage biomarkers, and preserving liver weights.

Keywords: Dysbiosis; gut microbiota; oxidative stress; pesticide; polysaccharides.

Figure 1.

PRISMA flow diagram depicting the article selection process.

Figure 2.

Risk of bias assessment using the SYRCLE Risk of Bias tool.

Figure 3.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on malondialdehyde (MDA) levels, comparing the effects of various polysaccharide doses (≤25 mg/kg BW, 26–50 mg/kg BW, 51–100 mg/kg BW, 101–200 mg/kg BW, 201–300 mg/kg BW, and >300 mg/kg BW) to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 4.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on nitric oxide (NO) levels, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 5.

Forest plot of meta-analysis assessing catalase (CAT) levels, comparing the effect of various polysaccharide doses (≤25 mg/kg BW to >45 mg/kg BW) to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 6.

Forest plot of meta-analysis assessing superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, comparing the effects of various polysaccharide doses (≤25 mg/kg body weight [BW], 26–50 mg/kg BW, 51–100 mg/kg BW, 101–200 mg/kg BW, and 201–300 mg/kg BW) to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 7.

Forest plot of meta-analysis assessing glutathione peroxidase (GPx) levels, comparing the effects of various polysaccharide doses (≤25 mg/kg BW to ≥45 mg/kg BW) to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 8.

Forest plot of meta-analysis assessing glutathione (GSH) levels, comparing the effects of various polysaccharide doses (≤25 mg/kg body weight [BW] to >50 mg/kg BW) to pesticide- only exposure.

Figure 9.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 10.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 11.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on alkaline phosphatase (ALP) levels, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 12.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis assessing liver weight in pesticide-exposed animal models, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment at different dose ranges: <150 mg/kg BW, 150–180 mg/kg BW, and >180 mg/kg BW, to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 13.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis assessing creatinine levels in pesticide-exposed animal models, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment at two dose ranges: <150 mg/kg body BW and >150 mg/kg BW, to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 14.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis assessing urea levels in pesticide-exposed animal models, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment at different dose ranges: ≤50 mg/kg BW, 50–100 mg/kg BW, and ≥100 mg/kg BW, to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 15.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis assessing kidney weight in pesticide-exposed animal models, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment at different dose ranges: <50 mg/kg BW and ≥50 mg/kg BW, to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 16.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis evaluating triglyceride levels in pesticide-exposed animal models, comparing the effects of polysaccharide doses categorized as ≤100 mg/kg BW and ≥200 mg/kg BW to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 17.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on low-density lipoprotein (LDL) levels, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 18.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis on high-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels, comparing the effects of polysaccharide treatment to pesticide-only exposure.

Figure 19.

Forest plot of the meta-analysis evaluating total cholesterol (TC) levels in pesticide- exposed animal models, comparing the effects of polysaccharide doses categorized as ≤100 mg/kg BW and ≥200 mg/kg BW to pesticide-only exposure.