Ameliorative effect of aqueous leaves extract of Rosemarinus officinalis on cadmium - induced kidney injury in albino rats

Cadmium (Cd) is one of the heavy metals causing risks for living organisms and induced high toxicity to different biological system. Rosemary (Rosemarinus officinalis) is plant widely used in food. It has antimicrobial, antioxidant, anti-carcinogenic properties. The present work studied the effect of rosemary leaf extract on Cd induced kidney injury in rats.Cadmium chloride (30 mg/kg b.w, 5 consecutive days/week for 8 weeks) administration increased renal MDA but decreased GSH, CAT and SOD activities versus control. In parallel, serum urea and creatinine increased. Cadmium chloride caused histological alternations involved shrinkage in glomeruli, congestion in blood vessels, dilation in renal tubules and leucocytic infiltrations. Ultrastructural observations showed abnormality in nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum, brush border, proximal and distal convoluted tubules. In the contrary, administration of aqueous extract of rosemary restored these changes. The results suggested that rosemary ameliorative these changes due to its antioxidant properties by scavenging free radicals resulting from cadmium chloride.