The Radioprotective Effect of Magnesium Sulfate and Vitamin A on Radiation-induced Micronuclei and the Expression of NOX4 in Bone Marrow Cells of Mice

Radioprotectors are used to neutralize the effects of free radicals caused by ionization radiation. In this study, the radioprotective effects of magnesium sulfate and vitamin A on bone marrow cells of mice were evaluated by micronucleus assay and changes in the expression of NOX4 gene. The mice were randomly divided into 12 groups. The mixture of drugs was injected into mice by intraperitoneal injection 2 hours before the irradiation. The dose rate was 50 cGy/min at SSD (source to surface distance) 100 cm and field size of 10×10cm2. Twenty four hours after 2 Gy irradiation by LINAC, the mice were sacrificed by cervical dislocation. Then, several microscopic slides were prepared for each sample to evaluate the number of micronucleus in polychromatic erythrocytes (PCEs). In addition, the expression of NOX4 was evaluated by Real-time PCR. Data were analyzed through SPSS 19 and the mean of groups was compared to each other using one-way ANOVA. There was a significant difference between mean mnPCEs in the treatment (drugs + radiation) groups compared to the 2 Gy group (P=0.01). The expression level of NOX4 gene was significantly lower in groups receiving the combinations of vitamin A and magnesium sulfate compared to the 2 Gy group (P =0.01). The calculated dose reduction factor (DRF) demonstrated DRF=2.58 for 2Gy. The results of this study indicated that the combination of vitamin A and magnesium sulfate, possibly with an antioxidant mechanism, removes the deleterious effects of free radicals caused by ionizing radiation on bone marrow cells.