Bioactive extract of mycelia biomass of Ganoderma lucidum protects doxorubicin induced cardiomyopathy

Cardiotoxicity induced by anticancer drug; doxorubicin (DOX) is a limiting factor for its prolonged use in chemotherapy. No effective drug is currently available to prevent DOX induced cardiomyopathy. Ganoderma lucidum is highly valued medicinal mushroom used in traditional medicine. Mycelia biomasses are considered as alternate sources of mushroom bioactive compounds. We examined the effect of bioactive extract of G. lucidum mycelia biomass (GLME) to prevent cardiotoxicity induced by DOX in rats using a cumulative dose 18 mg/kg body wt. GLME was administered to animals at doses of 250 and 500 mg/kg body wt. once daily for five days prior to DOX administration and continued for three more days. Animals were sacrificed 24 h after the last dose of drug. Activities of creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), endogenous antioxidant status, oxidative stress markers, electrocardiograph (ECG) and haematological parameters were evaluated. DOX administration drastically elevated CK, LDH, myocardial peroxidation and oxidative stress and significantly lowered endogenous antioxidant activity. GLME administration attenuated elevated levels of CK, LDH and oxidative stress and also ameliorated alterations in haematological and ECG parameters. Results revealed that bioactive extract of G. lucidum mycelia imparted significant protection against DOX induced cardiomyopathy suggesting the potential therapeutic significance of G. lucidum mycelia bioactives to alleviate DOX induced cardiomyopathy.