Radiation-induced
oral mucositis (RIOM) is a painful, dose-limiting toxicity in
cancer therapy. RIOM was induced by radiation on the left buccal pouch mucosa of Golden Syrian hamsters (n = 8/group). Animals were treated topically with
polyphenols (
Curcumin or
Quercetin) or
amino acids/metabolite mixtures (
Alanyl-Glutamine or Arginine + Glutamine + β-Hydroxy β-methylbutyric
acid (
Arg/Gln/HMB)) for over 20 day. Progression of RIOM was assessed using a standard visual scoring six-point scale, for differences in severity of
mucositis (score ≥3) (Chi-square analysis) and in the daily group scores (Mann-Whitney rank sum test). Compared to the controls, there was a significant reduction in number of days with severe RIOM (score ≥3) in the treatment groups:
Curcumin (50 μg/ml) = 17%; Control = 38.5%, p < 0.001;
Quercetin (50 μg/ml) = 27.6% and
Quercetin (100 μg/ml) = 25%; Control = 41.3%, p = 0.007 and p = 0.001, respectively;
Arg/Gln/HMB (50 mg/ml) = 31.9%; Control = 50.0%, p = 0.040. In addition,
Curcumin (50 μg/ml),
Quercetin (100 μg/ml) and
Arg/Gln/HMB (100 mg/ml) groups had lower
mucositis scores (≥3) on at least two consecutive time points over the course of the study than their respective controls. There were no significant group differences in deaths or
body weight. This study demonstrates the potential benefits of topical application of either plant
polyphenols or
amino acid/metabolite mixtures in addressing severity and progression of RIOM.