Amelioration of kidney injury induced by an alkylating chemotherapeutic agent.

Abstract

Cisplatin is an alkylating chemotherapeutic agent that is used in the treatment of solid tumors and hematological malignancies. A frequent adverse effect of cisplatin is nephrotoxicity, which arises from its accumulation in renal tubular cells, resulting in oxidative stress, inflammation, cell apoptosis and an enhanced risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) and a rapid decline in kidney function. The existing literature and the results of our previous research indicate that the pineal hormone melatonin has a nephroprotective effect in a number of experimental models of AKI. A series of studies have demonstrated that melatonin exerts a range of beneficial effects, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-apoptotic, immunomodulatory and cytoprotective properties. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effects of exogenous melatonin on the animal model of cisplatin-induced AKI.