RT Journal Article
T1 Melatonin protects rats from radiotherapy-induced small intestine toxicity
A1 Fernandez, Beatriz
A1 Moneim, Ahmed E. Abdel
A1 Ortiz, Francisco
A1 Shen, Ying-Qiang
A1 Soto-Mercado, Viviana
A1 Mendivil-Perez, Miguel
A1 Guerra-Librero, Ana
A1 Acuna-Castroviejo, Dario
A1 Molina-Navarro, Maria M.
A1 Garcia-Verdugo, Jose M.
A1 Sayed, Ramy K. A.
A1 Florido, Javier
A1 Luna, Juan D.
A1 Carlos Lopez, Luis
A1 Escames, Germaine
K1 Inflammasome activation
K1 Lipid-peroxidation
K1 Radiation-injury
K1 Mucositis
K1 Expression
K1 Cancer
K1 Pathobiology
K1 Glutathione
K1 Apoptosis
K1 Sepsis
AB Radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity is among the most prevalent dose-limiting toxicities following radiotherapy. Prevention of radiation enteropathy requires protection of the small intestine. However, despite the prevalence and burden of this pathology, there are currently no effective treatments for radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity, and this pathology remains unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the changes induced in the rat small intestine after external irradiation of the tongue, and to explore the potential radio-protective effects of melatonin gel. Male Wistar rats were subjected to irradiation of their tongues with an X-Ray YXLON Y. Tu 320-D03 irradiator, receiving a dose of 7.5 Gy/day for 5 days. For 21 days post-irradiation, rats were treated with 45 mg/day melatonin gel or vehicle, by local application into their mouths. Our results showed that mitochondrial oxidative stress, bioenergetic impairment, and subsequent NLRP3 inflammasome activation were involved in the development of radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity. Oral treatment with melatonin gel had a protective effect in the small intestine, which was associated with mitochondrial protection and, consequently, with a reduced inflammatory response, blunting the NF-kappa B/NLRP3 inflammasome signaling activation. Thus, rats treated with melatonin gel showed reduced intestinal apoptosis, relieving mucosal dysfunction and facilitating intestinal mucosa recovery. Our findings suggest that oral treatment with melatonin gel may be a potential preventive therapy for radiotherapy-induced gut toxicity in cancer patients.
PB Public library science
SN 1932-6203
YR 2017
FD 2017-03-09
LK http://hdl.handle.net/10668/19179
UL http://hdl.handle.net/10668/19179
LA en
NO Fernández-Gil B, Moneim AE, Ortiz F, Shen YQ, Soto-Mercado V, Mendivil-Perez M, et al. Melatonin protects rats from radiotherapy-induced small intestine toxicity. PLoS One. 2017 Apr 12;12(4):e0174474.
DS RISalud
RD Apr 11, 2025