Doxorubicin, L-arginine, or their combination as a prophylactic agent against hepatic carcinoma in mice

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international 2021-07, Vol.28 (28), p.37661-37671
• Main Authors: Al-Shahari, Eman A., El Barky, Amira Ragab, Mohamed, Tarek M., Alm-Eldeen, Abeer A.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Alanine; Alanine Transaminase; Amino acids; Animals; Antibiotics; Antioxidants; Aquatic Pollution; Arginine; Aspartate Aminotransferases; Aspartate transaminase; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; blood serum; Cancer; cancer therapy; carcinoma; Carcinoma, Hepatocellular - drug therapy; Caspase-3; Catalase; Cytokines; Doxorubicin; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Environmental science; Hepatocellular carcinoma; hepatoma; Immune system; Immunosuppressive agents; Interleukin 6; Interleukins; Lipid peroxidation; Lipids; Liver; Liver cancer; liver function; Liver Neoplasms - drug therapy; Mice; Oxidative stress; Parameters; Peroxidation; Research Article; Side effects; Transaminase; Tumor necrosis factor-α; Waste Water Technology; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; α-Fetoprotein
• ISSN: 0944-1344; 1614-7499
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-021-13177-1

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is one of the ten most commonly diagnosed cancers. Doxorubicin is an antibiotic used in cancer treatment protocols that has several side effects. L-Arginine is a non-essential amino acid that is used as immune system activation and antitumor drugs. Therefore, the current study was designed to compare using doxorubicin, L-arginine, or their combination as a prophylactic agent against hepatic carcinoma induced by hepatocellular carcinoma cells (HepG2) injection in mice. The mice were divided into five groups: normal mice and mice that received HepG2, doxorubicin and HepG2, L-arginine and HepG2, and doxorubicin, L-Arginine, and HepG2, respectively. Liver function test as, aspartate transaminase (AST) and alanine transaminase (ALT), and alpha-fetoprotein (AFP), caspase 3, interleukin 6 (IL-6), tumor necrotic factor (TNF), lipid peroxidation (NDA), and some antioxidant parameters were determined. A significant increase in AST and ALT, α-fetoprotein, TNF-α, and cytokines IL6 and MDA and a significant decrease in the serum caspase and liver catalase were determined in HepG2-injected mice. Moreover, some large hyperchromatic heptocytes were observed and the percentage of the positive area/field of HepPar-1, the most specific HCC marker, was 9.56%. Interestingly, mice that received doxorubicin, L-arginine, or their combination showed an improvement in some of the previous parameters. The improvement was more prominent with L-arginine administration.