Evaluation of Hematological, inflamatory and Histopathological Changes in Doxorubicin Induced Heart Failure Rats Receiving Sardinella maderensis Oil as Protective Measure

Objective: Current studies suggest that fish oil may have cardioprotective effects. The objective of this study was to evaluate the hematological, inflammatory markers, and histopathological changes in doxorubicin induced heart failure rats receiving Sardinella maderensis fish oil. Materials and Methods: Sardine fish was purchased from Congelcam, and oil extracted using the standard Bligh and Dyer protocol. The oil quality indices (acide value, iodine value, peroxide value, anisidine value and Totox value) were measured using standard AOAC methods To test the biochemical activities of the oil, 36 male wistar rats weighing between 150g to 180g were purchased. The animals had food and water ad libitum throughout the experimental period (28 days). They were divided into six groups of six rats each: G1 (normal group), G2 (negative control), G3 (Positive control; gemfibrozil 100 mg/kg), G4 (Test group I; fish oil 250 mg/kg), G5 (Test group II; fish oil 500 mg/kg), G6 (Test Group III; fish oil 1000 mg/kg). G1 rats received distilled water, G2 to G6 rats received DOX 2.5mg/kg on days 13, 16, 19, 22, 25, 28 for a cumulative dose of 15 mg/kg. On the 29th day, the rats were anaesthetized, sacrificed and blood samples collected to assess serum cytokine levels and hematological parameters. Organs were also collected for histopathological analysis. Results: Results showed that DOX administration significantly decreased (p<0.001) hematological parameters WBC, RBC, Hb, hematocrit, platelets, monocytes, granulocytes, MCV, MCH and MCHC in the negative group compared to the normal group. Serum levels of inflammatory cytokines increased significantly (p<0.001) in the negative group TNF-α (352.7), INF-δ (364.17), IL-1β (323.91), IL-6 (479.88) and IL-10 (397.91) compared to the normal group. However, pre-treatment with fish oil in the test groups significantly increased (p<0.05) hematological parameters (WBC, RBC, Hb, hematocrit, platelets, monocytes, granulocytes, MCV, MCH) compared to the negative group. Serum levels of inflammatory cytokines in the test groups decreased significantly (p<0.05) especially those in test group III; TNF-α (184.85), INF-δ (145.15), IL-1β (152.81), IL-6 (321.58) and IL-10 (230.33). Histological lesions identified in the heart, liver, and kidney tissues of the negative control rats were significantly attenuated in all the test groups receiving fish oil. Conlusion: Animals receiving fish had improved hematological parameters, decreased levels of inflammatory cytokines and improved organ histology. These findings demonstrate therefore that Sardinella maderensis oil could have cardio-protective effects on human health.