Dietary supplementation with manganese and selenium offer protection against cadmium-induced oxidative damage to rat liver and kidney

The present study determined the effect of pre-supplementation with manganese (Mn) and selenium (Se) on biomarkers of oxidative stress in the liver and kidneys of rats exposed to a mild dose of cadmium. Sixteen Male Wistar strain rats (180-200 g b. wt) were divided into four groups (control, Cd alone, Mn + Se + Cd and Mn + Se). The rats used as the control received a normal rat diet and tap water throughout the study while the Cd alone rats received a normal rat diet and then exposed to a single daily oral dose of cadmium (3 mg CdCl₂/kg) in drinking water for three days. Mn + Se + Cd rats were pretreated with Mn (3 mg MnCl₂/kg/day) and Se (3mg SeO₂/kg/day) for seven days and thereafter received a single daily oral dose of cadmium (3 mg CdCl₂/kg) in drinking water for three days while Mn + Se rats were exposed to only Mn (3 mg MnCl₂/kg/day) and Se (3mg SeO₂/kg/day) for seven days. At the end of the experiment tissue cadmium concentration, membrane lipid peroxidation, glutathione content, and activities of antioxidant enzymes catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase were determined in the liver and kidney samples. The results showed that pretreatment with Mn and Se effectively countered Cd-induced cadmium accumulation, membrane lipid peroxidation, depletion of the non-enzymic antioxidant, glutathione, and induction of the antioxidant enzymes catalase, superoxide dismutase and glutathione peroxidase in the liver and kidney. It can be concluded that pre-supplementation with Mn and Se significantly reversed Cd-induced deleterious alterations in the liver and kidney tissue of the rats.