Protective Effect of Wheat and Barley Grass Against the Acute Toxicological Effects of the Concurrent Administration of Excessive Heavy Metals in Drinking Water on the Rats Liver and Brain

Abstract

Heavy metal contaminated water is a great concern because of its high toxiciy, non-biodegradability, and bioaccumulation. Therefore, non-contaminated water is fundamental for a healthy life. Special attention is paid to the health-promoting ingredients of germinated whole cereal products. This study aimed to (1) examine the potentially harmful effects of Cu, Mn, and Zn on rat livers and brains, and (2) the potentially protective action of wheat and barley grasses against the expected harmful effects of these metals. The rats were treated with water contaminated by heavy metals (HMs) and germinated wheat and barley for 60 days. The rat liver functions and histopathological examinations were analyzed. Comet assay was evaluated to assess the damage in the DNA of rat livers and brains. The results indicated a significant alteration in liver functions in rats exposed to HMs; however, wheat and barley grasses at high doses decreased the harmful effects. An insignificant difference was noticed in total protein, albumin, and globulin of rats treated with HMs compared with the control. A significant increase in the serum and liver levels of HMs was recorded; however, they were reduced by wheat and barley grasses. Rat livers treated with HMs exhibited severe histological effects. The groups treated with wheat and barley grasses showed a normal liver architecture. A significant increase in DNA damage in the livers and brains was observed in rats treated with HMs, which was reduced when treated with wheat and barley grasses. Thus, using germinated seeds is promising to avoid damaging of HMs.

Effect of Ajwa Date and Germinated Barley on Lipid Profile in Rats Fed High-Fat Diet

“…The TG was lower in all rats co-treated with AD and GB. Similar to our results, AD significantly reduced TC and glucose, indicating a protective agent against obesity in animal studies [56,57]. The dietary fiber of β-glucans can increase the abundance of probiotics, which can accelerate the secretion of unconjugated bile acids and thus help to regulate the level of TC in the blood short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) resulting from the fermentation of food fibers inhibiting the activity of enzymes that synthesize TC within the body, thus reducing blood TC levels [24].…”

Low Cost and Eco-Friendly Removal of Toxic Heavy Metal from Industrial Wastewater

“…In addition, water bodies' contamination by HMs through discharging industrial wastewater is a worldwide environmental issue that needs to be properly addressed. Rapid industrialization has seriously contributed to the release of potentially toxic HMs to water streams (Ahmaruzzaman 2011;Reddy et al 2011;Islam et al 2016;Saha and Rahman 2018;Aitta et al, 2019;Shahedi et al 2020;Eldamaty et al, 2021). Heavy metals such as Cu, Fe, Ni, Pb, and Zn are among the most common inorganic contaminants found in industrial wastewater (Reddy et al 2011).…”