Preventive effects of curcumin on different aspiration material-induced lung injury in rats

We have studied whether curcumin protects different pulmonary aspiration material-induced lung injury in rats. The experiments were designed in 60 Sprague–Dawley rats, randomly allotted into one of six groups (n = 10): normal saline (NS, control), enteral formula (Biosorb Energy Plus, BIO), hydrochloric acid (HCl), NS + curcumin-treated, BIO + curcumin-treated, and HCl + curcumin-treated. NS, BIO, HCl were injected in to the lungs. The rats received curcumin twice daily only for 7 days. Seven days later, both lungs in all groups were examined histopathologically, immunohistochemically, and biochemically. Histopathologic examination was performed according to the presence of peribronchial inflammatory cell infiltration, alveolar septal infiltration, alveolar edema, alveolar exudate, alveolar histiocytes, interstitial fibrosis, granuloma, and necrosis formation. Immunohistochemical assessments were examined for the activity of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and the expression of surfactant protein D (SP-D). Malondialdehyde (MDA), hydroxyproline (HP), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity were measured in the lung tissue. Our findings show that curcumin inhibits the inflammatory response reducing significantly (P