Prophylactic effects of <i>Aloe vera</i> against X-ray irradiation–induced structural alterations and DNA damage in mice

Radiation exposures, whether planned or unexpected, can have harmful consequences on biological systems. To avoid these radiotoxic consequences, a variety of natural and synthetic radioprotectors are given prior to radiation exposure. The present study aimed to investigate the radioprotective potential of <i>Aloe vera</i> gel extract against damage induced by whole-body X-ray exposure in male balb/c mice. The animals were divided into four groups: Control, <i>Aloe vera</i> (50 mg/kg body weight orally on alternate days for 30 days), X-ray (cumulative dose of 2 Gy) (i.e., 0.258 Gy twice a day for four consecutive days) in the last week of the experimental protocol, and <i>Aloe vera</i> + X-ray. Following irradiation, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) analysis showed structural changes in molecules by altering the ratios of CH₃/lipid, CH₂/lipid, lipid/protein, Amide I/II, and nucleic acid in liver and testes. X-ray exposure led to an increase in DNA strand breaks in the liver, spleen, kidney, and testes of mice, as indicated by comet assay. Bcl-2 levels were shown to be up-regulated in the kidney and testes following irradiation. In liver, kidney, and spleen, caspase 3 was also found to be up-regulated. Furthermore, after being exposed to X-rays, the expression of caspase 9 and bax was up-regulated in all the tissues examined. Administration of <i>Aloe vera</i> to the X-ray-exposed group exhibited decline in DNA strand breaks in all tissues investigated. Moreover, protein expressions of these genes were found to be down-regulated in the <i>Aloe vera</i> + X-ray-exposed group. These observations illustrate the potential of <i>Aloe vera</i> in providing radioprotection for rodents, possibly DNA protection, through its anti-apoptotic properties.