Assessment of the antioxidant efficacy of Agaricus Bisporus against bleomycin-induced pulmonary oxidative stress in rats.

Oxidative damage is an important factor in many disorders. Agaricus bisporus is the most popular edible mushroom species. This study aimed to investigate how Agaricus bisporus can protect against bleomycin-induced pulmonary oxidative damage in rats. The study involved 42 male rats divided into 7 groups, 6 rats per group, for treatment over 3 weeks. The control-negative group (I) administered 1 ml saline, orally, once daily., while the intoxicated group (II) was administered bleomycin sulfate at a dosage of 0.54 mg /rat. Subcutaneously, twice weekly. Test groups (III, IV) were given Agaricus bisporus extract (ABE) at low and high doses of 250 or 500 mg/kg, respectively, orally, daily with bleomycin. The standard group (V) received vitamin C at a dose of 200 mg/kg, orally, daily with bleomycin, and the last two groups (VI, VII) received only Agaricus bisporus extract at the same dose levels. By the end of the experiment, blood samples and lung tissues were taken to evaluate antioxidant enzyme activity and gene expression. Results showed that bleomycin reduced antioxidant enzyme activities SOD, GPx, and Catalase (MD ± SE = 76.50±4.29e, 14.52±1.39e, and 25.57±4.17e, respectively) and increased lipid peroxidation MDA (MD±SE=250. 19±17.23a), accompanied by the downregulation of the lung CAT, SOD, and GPx antioxidant enzyme genes (MD±SE= 0.30±0.02e, 0.47±0.04e, 0.39±0.02e, respectively). While Agaricus bisporus extract significantly countered these effects. Pathological findings supported the biochemical and gene expression findings. The study concluded that Agaricus bisporus has notable antioxidant properties and potentially treats oxidative stress-related diseases by enhancing antioxidant enzyme gene expression.