Edaravone Decreases Paraquat Toxicity in A549 Cells and Lung Isolated Mitochondria

Edaravone, an antioxidant and radical scavenger, showed protective effects against oxidative stress-like condition. Paraquat (PQ) is toxic herbicide considerable evidence suggests that oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction contribute to PQ toxicity. In this study, protective effect of edaravone against PQ induced toxicity and reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation in A549 cells and lung isolated mitochondria were evaluated. A549 cells and lung isolated mitochondria were divided into control group, PQ group, edaravone group and PQ plus edaravone-pretreated group. Cellular and mitochondrial viability assayed using MTT test and ROS generations in both cellular and mitochondrial fraction were determined by fluorometry using DCFH-DA as indicator. Our results showed that edaravone (5–100 µM) prevented PQ (500 µM) induced cytotoxicity in A549 cells that the best protective effect was observed at concentration of 50 µM of edaravone. In addition, PQ-induced ROS generation in A549 cells significantly inhibited by edaravone. Moreover, PQ decreased mitochondria viability and also increased ROS generation in lung isolated mitochondria that edaravone (25–400 µM) markedly inhibited these toxic effects. In overall, the results of this study suggest that lung mitochondria maintenance is essential for maintaining PQt cytotoxicity and Edaravone is a protective drug against PQ toxicity in-vitro.