Radio-protective effect of hydrogen rich water combined with amifostine in mice

Background:  Hydrogen has been demonstrated can selectively reduce the hydroxyl, which is the main cause of ionizing radiation-induced damage. Amifostine (AM) is the only radioprotective drug approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for use in radiotherapy. The purpose of the present study was to investigate the combined radio-protective effect of hydrogen rich water (HRW) and AM. Materials and Methods: Male ICR mice were treated intragastrically with HRW or/and intraperitoneally with AM 30 minutes prior to 9.0 Gy whole body irradiation from a 60Co source (dose rate 0.96Gy/min). Then the survival rate for 30 days, the hematological parameters, the Clinical chemistry parameters and the bone marrow nucleated cells were examined. Results: We found that the mice treated with HRW and AM before irradiation could increase the 30-day survival rate and improve the body weight better than the HRW or AM treatment alone group and irradiation alone group. Hematological test and Clinical chemistry assays also showed the same results that HRW combined AM could better improve the recovery of hemopoietic system and alleviate the detrimental effects of radiation. Conclusion: The results indicate that the combined application of HRW and AM may be a better method for radiation therapy.