Response of antioxidant status in kidney of pigs exposed to aflatoxin B1 to dietary grape seed meal

This study investigated the effects of dietary inclusion of grape seed meal (GSM) on antioxidant markers in kidney of aflatoxin B1 fed pigs. Twenty-four cross-bred pigs (TOPIG-40) were randomly assigned to one of the four experimental diets: control (Control), aflatoxin B1 (diet contaminated with 320 μg AFB1/kg feed), grape seed meal (diet with 8% GSM) and AFB1+GSM (320 μg AFB1/kg feed + 8% GSM) for 30 days. Aflatoxin B1 induced oxidative damage and showed lower antioxidant status in kidney after 30 days. CAT and SOD activity measured in kidneys revealed significant differences when comparing the GSM+AFB1 group with the AFB1 group. Additionally, GSM diet alone did not affect CAT and SOD levels in kidneys of piglets compared with the control group, suggesting that they are maintained at physiological levels. We did not detect any effects of GSM on GPx and TAS. Including GSM into piglets’ diet significantly lowered lipid peroxidation induced by AFB1, while it did not affect it compared with the control group. The present study demonstrated the ability of GSM to alleviate the effects induced by the toxin evidenced by the improvement in the antioxidant status, and suggests the potential applicability of GSM as mycotoxin adsorbent in animal feed.