Chemotherapeutic Effect of Berberine, Oxidative Stress, and Genotoxic Studies in Methylnitronitrosoguanidine-Induced Gastric Carcinoma in Experimental Rats

This study was to investigate the effects of Ceriops decandra mangrove plant-derived berberine against methylnitronitrosoguanidine (MNNG)-induced experimental gastric cancer in the albino rat. Stomach cancer was induced in the male albino rat by painting with MNNG 200 mg/kg for a week twice up to the 3rd week orally. In this study, animals were divided into four groups, each with eight animals. The cancer-bearing animals were treated with 40 μg/mL orally administered berberine from the 3rd week to the 25th week. After the 25th week, the experimental protocol was discontinued. Histopathological and biochemical examination (lipid peroxidation, antioxidant profile, and detoxification enzymes) of serum, stomach, and liver tissues confirmed the progression of gastric cancer. MNNG-painted rats had dramatically increased levels of oxidation and lipid peroxidation. Results in berberine-treated animals showed that the negative effects of MNNG were reversed. For mitochondrial-mediated apoptosis, western blot analysis showed that berberine treatment increased the release of HER2, NF-κB, and CA 19-9 expression. These results suggest that C. decandra mangrove species-derived berberine might have potent anti-carcinogenic and anti-oxidant effects in animals with MNNG-induced gastric cancer.