ameliorating effects of silymarin-loaded plga on acetaminophen-induced nephrotoxicity in mice

Background: silymarin (sm) has beneficial effects against numerous different types of toxicants. however, the low bioavailability of sm has limited its therapeutic effects. objectives: this study investigated the toxic effect of nanostructured sm (nsm) in poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) (plga) nanoparticles on nephrotoxicity induced by acetaminophen (apap) in mice. methods: the encapsulation of sm in plga was performed by the solvent evaporation method. a total of 48 nmri mice were used in this experimental study. the mice were pretreated with sm or nsm (5 mg/kg) for 7 days, and apap (300 mg/kg) was administrated on the 6th day. the serum levels of blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, and uric acid were measured. histological assessment and messenger ribonucleic acid expression of baxand bcl-2genes were also carried out. results: the apap destroyed the structure of the renal tissue and significantly reduced renal weight and glomerulus diameters (p < 0.01). the apap also caused a significant increase in the serum levels of biochemical markers (p < 0.001) and expression of the bax/ bcl-2ratio in the renal tissue (p < 0.001). the nsm could improve the renal structure and significantly increase renal weight and glomerulus in the apap-intoxicated mice. the nsm significantly reduced the level of the biochemical tests and the bax/ bcl-2ratio in the apap-treated group (p < 0.01). conclusions: the obtained data indicate that plga effectively enhances the nephroprotective effects of sm on nephrotoxicity induced by apap.