Antioxidant effect of butylated hydroxytoluene on ferric nitrilotriacetate induced renal hyper proliferation and injury in rats

This study was designed to investigate the effect of butylated hydroxy toluene (BHT), a phenolic antioxidant used in foods, cosmetics and pharmaceutical products, on Fe-NTA-induced nephrotoxicity in rats. Fe-NTA (alone) treatment enhances ornithine decarboxylase activity to 5.3-fold, and [3H] thymidine incorporation in DNA to 3.5-fold compared with the corresponding saline treated control. The enhanced ornithine decarboxylase activity and DNA synthesis showed a reduction to 2.12–2.15-fold respectively at a higher dose of 2 mg BHT/day/animal, compared with the Fe-NTA treated group. Fe-NTA treatment also enhanced the renal microsomal lipid peroxidation to 2.0-fold and decreased the activities of glutathione and antioxidant enzymes to a range of 2.2–2.5-fold in kidney. These changes were reversed significantly in animals receiving a pretreatment of BHT. Present data suggests that BHT can prevent the toxic effects of Fe-NTA and can serve as a potent chemopreventive agent to suppress oxidant-induced tissue injury and nephrotoxicity in rats.