Effects of the plant flavonoids silymarin and quercetin on arsenite-induced oxidative stress in CHO-K1 cells

Chronic toxic effects of arsenic resulting from drinking water are a human health problem, especially in South-America and Asia. Arsenic is capable of influencing various cellular processes, causing adverse effects, including cancer. Although the exact mechanism of the action is not known, a correlation between oxidative stress, tumour promotion and arsenic exposure has been observed. We examined the effects of silymarin and quercetin, in counteracting oxidative stress produced by acute or sub-chronic sodium arsenite exposure. The stress responses to arsenite included an increase in the heat shock protein 70 kDa expression, lipid peroxidation assayed by conjugated dienes measure, and γ-glutamyl-transpeptidase activity. We found that all these stress responses were eliminated by silymarin and quercetin in acute experiments. Both flavonoids diminished the conjugated dienes formation during sub-chronic cultures. Our results suggest that these antioxidant flavonoids, which may be easily incorporated into the diet, may afford a protective effect against arsenite-induced cytotoxicity.