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ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Protective Effect of Chlorella, Spirulina,
and Astaxanthin Against Methotrexate-
Induced Oxidative Biochemical Alterations
in Liver and Kidney of Mice
1
Laboratory of Cell Toxicology, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Badj-Mokhtar Annaba University, BP.12,
23000 Annaba, Algeria
2
Environmental Research Centre, Boughazi Saïd, PB23000 Annaba, Algeria
Submission date: 2024-06-15
Final revision date: 2024-08-22
Acceptance date: 2024-09-09
Online publication date: 2024-12-30
Publication date: 2025-11-04
Corresponding author
Ghozlene Issaad
Laboratory of Cell Toxicology, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Badj-Mokhtar Annaba University, BP.12, 23000 Annaba, Algeria
Laboratory of Cell Toxicology, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Badj-Mokhtar Annaba University, BP.12, 23000 Annaba, Algeria
Pol. J. Environ. Stud. 2025;34(6):7179-7188
KEYWORDS
TOPICS
ABSTRACT
In this study, we examined the beneficial effects of Chlorella, Spirulina, and astaxanthin on
methotrexate-induced oxidative injury in the kidney and liver. Astaxanthin, spirulina, and chlorella
were administered orally to male mice for 8 days, and on the 5th day, methotrexate was intraperitoneally
injected into the mice. The results revealed that methotrexate caused a significant decrease in body
weight and food and water intake, along with a significant increase in serum AST, ALT, urea, and
creatinine levels compared with controls. Methotrexate-induced oxidative effects were revealed by
a marked decrease in catalase and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity. Chlorella, Spirulina
extracts, and astaxanthin markedly reversed the above-altered parameters, suggesting, therefore, their
potential use for alleviating the harmful effects of methotrexate in mice. The observed biochemical
changes in the treated animals compared with those of controls were supported by the liver and kidney
histopathological changes.
CONFLICT OF INTEREST
The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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