Abstract

NATURAL FLAVONOID ATTENUATES MANGANESE-INDUCED MANGANISM IN RATS

Harihara Behera* and Abhisek Pal

Abstract

Manganese (Mn) is a metal required by biological systems. However, environmental or occupational exposure to high levels of Mn can produce a neurological disorder called manganism. The neuroprotective actions of dietary flavonoids involve a number of effects within the brain, including a potential to protect neurons against injury induced by neurotoxins. The present study was designed to investigate the effects of long term low-dose exposure to Mn in drinking water on behavioral and biochemical parameters in rats and to determine the effectiveness of flavonoid in attenuating the effects of Mn. After 30 days of continuous treatment with MnCl2 (10 mg/kg), rats exhibited clear signs of neurobehavioral toxicity depicted in terms of catalepsy score using standard bar tes, activity score using actophotometer, manganese tissue analysis, neurohistopathology, neuroimaging and biochemical analysis. Our findings show that oral exposure to Mn may cause neurobehavioral abnormalities in adult rats that could be efficiently alleviated by concomitant supplementation of flavonoid in animal feed.

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