Mechanisms of modulating action of thymoquinone (component of black cumin, Nigella sativa), affecting the activity of some nuclear and mitochondrial genes in mice tissue after exposure to X-Ray radiation

The paper discusses a promising herbal preparation – thymoquinone, a component of black cumin (Nigella sativa), studied in experimental animals (mice, rats) in many pathologies, characterized by a positive effect and lack of toxic effect. The drug has been studied in a wide range of doses for injection and oral administration. Thymoquinone has antimicrobial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, and radioprotective properties. The main damaging component of ionizing radiation is oxidative stress. For this reason, radioprotectors have recently been evaluated based on the drug’s ability to reduce oxidative stress. As markers of oxidative stress, we used parameters of changes in the expression of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA genes that perform essential functions in the cell. C57Bl/6 mice were administered thymoquinone (10 mg/kg) after 30 min. irradiation was performed (6 Gy). After 6 and 24 hours, gene expression in brain and spleen cells was studied using real-time PCR. It was shown that the activity of nuclear genes increased after exposure to radiation, but was normalized if thymoquinone was administered to mice 30 minutes before irradiation. Mitochondrial genes were also modified to target the activity of control cells. The test results show that thymoquinone has protective properties and may be promising as a radioprotector.