Effects of Bee Bread on Paracetamol-Induced Intestinal Injury in Rats

Abstract

Although paracetamol (PS) is widely used as a safe analgesic and antipyretic agent in both humans and animals at therapeutic doses, high-dose administration may cause damage not only to the liver and kidneys but also to the gastrointestinal system. The present study aimed to evaluate the protective effects of bee bread (BB) on intestinal integrity and inflammation in a paracetamol-induced intestinal injury model in Wistar rats using histopathological and immunohistochemical methods. The expression levels of the tight junction protein zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) and the inflammatory marker myeloperoxidase (MPO) were evaluated by immunohistochemistry. A total of 32 male rats (8-10 weeks old, 250-300 g) were randomly assigned to four groups (n = 8 per group), consisting of the control group, the BB group (750 mg/kg/day orally for 10 days), the PS group (1000 mg/kg administered as a single oral dose on day 10), and the PS plus BB group. The BB group exhibited normal intestinal histological architecture, preserved ZO-1 expression, and low MPO immunoreactivity, comparable to those observed in the control group. In contrast, the PS group showed marked mucosal irregularities, villus degeneration, increased inflammatory cell infiltration, decreased ZO-1 expression, and increased MPO immunoreactivity. Compared with the PS group, BB treatment alleviated paracetamol-induced intestinal injury, increased ZO-1 expression, and reduced MPO immunoreactivity in the PS plus BB group. In conclusion, BB administration alone did not adversely affect intestinal morphology or the evaluated immunohistochemical markers and partially protected against paracetamol-induced intestinal injury by preserving intestinal barrier integrity and attenuating inflammatory responses.