Nephroprotective potential of Neermulli/Nerunjil Kudineer on Cisplatin induced nephrotoxicity in Wistar albino rats

Nerunjil kudineer/Neermulli Kudinner is an official Siddha polyherbal formulation used for the various ailments related to the kidney. Cisplatin is an alkylating agent used in chemotherapy for the treatment of various cancers. Its use is limited due to their nephrotoxicity. In this study nephroprotective effect of Nerunjil kudineer (NK) on cisplatin-induced nephrotoxicity in Wistar albino Rats was studied. Male Wistar albino rats were used for this study. Animals were divided into 5 groups (n=6) as control, Cisplatin control (Single dose 7 mg/Kg i.p on the 7th day), Cisplatin with Cystone (p.o), NK200 and NK400 mg/Kg (p.o) for 10 days. At the end of the study, animals were weighed and sacrificed to estimate the relative kidney weight, serum creatinine and Urea. Kidney tissue was estimated for oxidant-antioxidant parameters (MDA, GSH & SOD) and histology study was carried out. Cisplatin reduced body weight and increased kidney weight significantly (P<0.0001). It deprived the renal function by elevating serum creatinine & urea, MDA and reduction in endogenous antioxidants GSH and SOD significantly (P<0.0001). Cisplatin group exhibited focal tubular necrosis and congested blood vessels in histology study. The standard drug Cystone and NK400 significantly increased the body weight, reduced the kidney weight, normalized the kidney function parameters (Serum Cr and Urea), bolstered antioxidant status and showed a trend towards the recovery of histological alterations. NK showed a dose-dependent activity and higher dose, NK400mg /Kg possessed strong nephroprotective activity, which may be due to the efficient antioxidant potential, which reduces lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress induced by cisplatin. The results strongly suggest that Nerunjil kudineer is an effective nephroprotective drug against Cisplatin induced nephrotoxicity.