Application of Iron Nanoparticles Containing Hydroxytyrosol in the Treatment of Phenylhydrazine-Induced Hemolytic Anemia in Male Rats

Recently, medicinal plants, a rich source of various active phytochemicals, have increasingly been used to synthesize nanoparticles characterized by their high stability, low cost, nontoxicity and biocompatibility. These nanoparticles have been widely used for therapeutic purposes, such as treating anemia; therefore, in this study, hydroxytyrosol was used for FeNPs biosynthesis that aimed to investigate their antianemic potential against phenylhydrazine-induced anemia in rats. The hematological parameters were analyzed immediately after the blood samples were drawn from the hearts of 40 rats after 21 days of treatment, following the induction of hemolytic anemia with three intraperitoneal injections of phenylhydrazine at a dosage of 20 mg/kg body weight on days 1, 3 and 5. The structural and morphological characteristics of green-synthesized FeNPs were examined using various techniques, such as UV–Visible and FT-IR spectroscopy, EDX, XRD, Fe-SEM and TEM. The images (FESEM) have demonstrated a quasi-spherical shape with an average dimension of approximately 33 nm. Significant reductions in red blood cells (RBCs), hemoglobin and hematocrit were observed in rodents following phenylhydrazine injections. The bloodstream’s red blood cell, hemoglobin and hematocrit levels were substantially increased by FeNPs treatment. Based on the current findings, we suggest that synthesized FeNPs could be used as a treatment for hemolytic anemia due to their antioxidant activity, which in turn suppresses free radicals and presents a promising alternative to traditional agents, offering improved efficacy, safety and patient comfort.