Does Gum Arabic Have an Antioxidant Action in Rat Kidney?

Gum Arabic has recently been claimed to be effective in preventing gentamicin-induced acute renal failure in rats. The nephroprotection was suggested to be due to an anti-oxidant action by the gum Arabic. In the present work we tested whether treatment with gum Arabic has any effect on the concentrations of some free radical scavengers [reduced glutathione (GSH), ascorbic acid (AA), lipid peroxidation (LP), and superoxide dismutase (SOD)] in the kidneys and liver of healthy rats given gum Arabic in the drinking water at a concentration of 2.5, 5.0 or 10.0%^w/v for eight consecutive days. Twenty-four hours after the last treatment, rats were killed and the above variables were measured in homogenates of kidney and liver by established spectrophotometric methods. The results indicated that the gum Arabic, at the three doses used, did not significantly affect any of the variables measured. It seems highly unlikely that gum Arabic has a palliative effect on renal failure through an antioxidant mechanism.