Arsenic contamination of groundwater in the West Bengal basin in India is unfolding as one of the worst natural geo-environmental disasters to date.
Chelation therapy with
chelating agents is considered to be the best known treatment against
arsenic poisoning; however, they are compromised with certain serious drawbacks/side-effects. Efficacy of combined administration of Moringa oleifera (M. oleifera) (English: Drumstick tree) seed
powder, a herbal extract, with a
thiol chelator monoisoamyl
DMSA (
MiADMSA) post-
arsenic exposure in mice was studied. Mice were exposed to 100 ppm
arsenic in
drinking water for 6 months, followed by 10-days treatment with M. oleifera seed
powder (500 mg/kg, orally through gastric gavage, once daily),
MiADMSA (50 mg/kg, intraperitoneally, once daily) either individually or in combination.
Arsenic exposure caused significant decrease in blood
glutathione,
delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (ALAD), accompanied by increased production of
reactive oxygen species in blood and soft tissues. Significant inhibition of
superoxide dismutase,
catalase, and
glutathione peroxidase activities in tissues (liver in particular) along with significant increase in
thiobarbituric acid reactive substances and
metallothionein levels in
arsenic intoxicated mice was also noted. Combined administration of
MiADMSA with M. oleifera proved better than all other treatments in the recovery of most of the above parameters accompanied by more pronounced depletion of
arsenic. The results suggest that concomitant administration of M. oleifera during chelation treatment with
MiADMSA might be a better treatment option than monotherapy with the
thiol chelator in chronic
arsenic toxicity.