Effect of melanin on gold nanoparticle-induced hepatotoxicity and lipid peroxidation in rats.

Introduction: Melanin pigments are produced by melanocytes and are believed to act as antioxidants based on the belief that melanin can suppress electronically stirred states and scavenge the free radicals.

Materials and methods: The study was aimed to verify and prove the toxicity induced by administration of gold nanoparticles (GNPs) and to characterize the role of melanin as an antioxidant against inflammatory liver damage, oxidative stress, and lipid peroxidation induced intraperitoneally by GNPs in vivo.

Results: The findings from this study confirmed that administration of GNPs intraperitoneally caused liver damage in addition to producing oxidative stress and fatty acid peroxidation. The treatment of rats with melanin along with GNPs induced dramatic changes in all the measured biochemical parameters. Our data demonstrated that melanin completely inhibited inflammatory liver damage, oxidative stress, and lipid peroxidation, which was confirmed by the histological investigation of different liver sections stained by H&E.

Conclusion: These results suggest the beneficial use of melanin together with GNPs for alleviating its toxicity. Other studies should be implemented taking into consideration the role of melanin in comparison with other natural antioxidants.