Thymoquinone Therapy Improves Hyperglycemia, Erythrocyte Indices, Erythropoietin Production and Erythrocyte Osmotic Resistance in Rat Model of Streptozotocin-induced Diabetes

Abstract

Herein, both antidiabetic and hematoprotective effect of thymoquinone (TQ) therapy was investigated in rat model of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes. After disease induction, TQ (35 mg/kg/day) was given for 28 days and fasting blood glucose level was weekly measured. At day 29, blood samples, pancreatic and kidney specimens were prepared and screened for: (1) hematological parameters: counts of red blood cells (RBCs), white blood cells (WBCs) and platelets (PLTs), erythrocyte osmotic fragility, normal hemoglobin (Hb) and glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c), hematocrit (HCT), mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean corpuscular hemoglobin (MCH) and mean corpuscular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC), (2) serum insulin and serum and renal erythropoietin (EPO) levels, (3) serum creatinine and urea levels, (4) concentrations of glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) in serum, pancreatic and renal tissues, and (5) pancreas histopathology.STZ-injected rats showed injured pancreatic islets accompanied with persistent hyperglycemia, significant decreases in serum insulin, serum and renal EPO, RBCs counts and indices, PLTs counts, and increases in HbA1c, erythrocyte osmotic, WBCs counts, and serum creatinine and urea. However, therapy with TQ successfully protected the pancreatic islets and significantly improved the glycemic status, insulin and EPO production, and the hematological parameters that were deteriorated in STZ-diabetic untreated rats. TQ therapy also improved renal function and reversed the decreases in GSH and SOD, and the increases in TBARs that were induced in STZ-diabetic rats. In conclusion, these findings emphasize the antihyperglycemic, antianemic and hematoprotective potential of TQ in STZ-diabetic rats. Further studies are still needed to confirm the hematoprotective efficacy of TQ in different modalities of DM.