الفهرس 
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Abstract
In the recent years, a wide variety of additives have been added to food products to improve their quality and make them more attractive among them food colorants.
The present study was designed to investigate the effects of synthetic and natural food colorants (including Tartrazine and Curcumin) on liver functions, renal functions, total lipids, hematological markers, antioxidants and oxidative stress markers, as well as their effects on serum testosterone level, sperm count and the expression level of STAR and CAT genes.
Tartrazine (TAZ) is a synthetic colorant used in food products such as cotton candy, soft drinks, chips, cereals, cake mixes, soups, sauces, ice cream, chewing gum, jam, jelly, as well as in cosmetics and medical products.
Curcumin (CUR) is a polyphenolic natural colorant extracted from Turmeric (Curcuma Longa) used as a spice and has a vital role in both medical and scientific field.
Ninety six of adult male albino rats weighting (120-150g) were used. The animals were divided into 8 groups of 12 per each as in the following:
The 1st group: (control group) received distilled water only
The 2nd group: treated with 7.5mg/kg b.wt of Tartrazine
The 3rd group: treated with 15mg/kg b.wt of Tartrazine.
The 4th group: treated with 30mg/kg b.wt of Tartrazine
The 5th group: treated with 200mg/kg b.wt of Curcumin
The 6th group: treated with 7.5mg/kg b.wt of Tartrazine +200mg/kg b.wt of Curcumin
The 7th group: treated with 15mg/kg b.wt of Tartrazine + 200mg/kg b.wt of Curcumin.
The 8th group: treated with 30mg/kg b.wt of Tartrazine + 200mg/kg b.wt of Curcumin.
Tartrazine and Curcumin were administered orally by gastric tube daily during the experiment periods (30 and 45 days).
At the end of 30th and 45th days of the experiment 6 rats from each group were sacrificed. Two blood samples were collected from the retro-orbital plexus of each rat using sterile microhematocrit capillary tubes:
(1) The first blood sample was taken in EDTA tube for hematological analysis.
(2) The second blood sample was collected into a gel tube without anticoagulant for the biochemical analysis including liver functions, renal functions, lipid profile and testosterone level.
Tissue samples from liver, kidney and testis were dissected out from each animal and divided into several parts for the following:
A part of liver tissue was preserved at –20◦C for determination of antioxidants and oxidative stress biomarkers (including superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione (GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GPX), malondiahyde (MDA) and catalase (CAT)).
Another part of Liver and testis tissues were preserved in liquid nitrogen and stored at –80◦C for RT-qPCR analysis of STAR and CAT genes.
Another part of liver, kidney and testis tissues were immersed in 10% buffered formalin for histopathological studies.
One epididymis from each animal was used to extract mature sperm in order to perform sperm count analysis.
The study revealed that administration of Tartrazine (TAZ) in three different doses during the time course of experiment (30 and 45 days) induced a significant increase in ALT, AST and serum level of bilirubin, as well as a significant decrease in serum albumin and total protein levels compared to the control. Also, TAZ administration induced a significant elevation in renal functions. Moreover, TAZ administration resulted in a significant increase in serum levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-c and a significant reduction in level of HDL-c. Further, TAZ administration caused a significant elevation in oxidative marker (MDA) in liver tissue accompanied with significant depletion in antioxidant activities (SOD, GSH, GPX and CAT) and the expression level of CAT gene. Additionally, TAZ administration displayed a significant decline in hematological markers (including Hb concentration, RBCs, WBCs and platelet counts). Also, TAZ ingestion provoked infertility response through decreasing serum testosterone level, sperm counts and the expression level of STAR gene in testicular tissue.
The study showed that Curcumin (CUR) administration displayed a significant increase in serum levels of ALT, AST, bilirubin and a significant decrease in levels of albumin and total protein. Also, CUR administration induced a significant elevation in serum levels of urea and creatinine, as well as a significant decrease in serum level of uric acid. Moreover, CUR administration led to a significant increase in serum levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, LDL-c and a significant reduction in level of HDL-c. Furthermore, CUR administration resulted in a significant decline in hepatic antioxidants (SOD, GSH, GPX and CAT) and the expression level of CAT gene, in addition to a significant increase in hepatic MDA level.
CUR administration induced non-significant reduction in Hb concentration and a significant decrease in RBCs counts, in addition to a significant increase in WBCs and platelet counts. Also, CUR ingestion induced a significant decline in serum testosterone level, sperm counts and the expression level of STAR gene.
The data of combined treatment indicated that administration of CUR along with TAZ induced a noticeable improvement in liver functions, renal functions, total lipids and hematological markers. Also, CUR administration along with TAZ resulted in an improvement in liver antioxidants activities (SOD, GSH, GPX and CAT) and the expression level of CAT gene, as well as a significant reduction in liver MDA level. Further, administration of TAZ+CUR showed a noticeable enhancement in fertility markers manifested by elevation of serum testosterone level, sperm counts and the expression level of STAR gene.
The histopathological findings of animals treated with TAZ and CUR individually recorded multiple damages in liver, renal and testis architectures, while groups received a mixture of TAZ+CUR showed a gradual enhancement in liver, renal and testicular tissues.