Iron induced genotoxicity: attenuation by vitamin C and its optimization

Vitamin C (VC) is a well-known antioxidant and strong free radical scavenger. Its antioxidant activity is useful for protection of cellular macromolecules, particularly DNA, from oxidative damage induced by different agents. This study was undertaken to evaluate the optimum level of VC in attenuating the chromosome aberrations (CAs) and DNA damage after iron sulfate (FeSO₄) acute administration in Wistar rats. The results exhibited that the increase of CAs and DNA damage induced by FeSO₄, 200 mg Fe/kg, could be reduced significantly by VC pretreatment at the dose of 500 mg/kg (p<0.001), but not in the 100 mg/kg group. The findings provide evidence that VC at the dose of 500 mg/kg exerted a possible protective effect against FeSO₄ induced CAs and DNA damage. The possible mechanisms of VC may be attributed to its property as a free radical scavenger or to its indirect action in reducing the level of reactive oxygen species (ROS).