Abdollah Abdollahpour - Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Islamic Azad University of Tabriz, Tabriz, Iran.
Amir Reza Karami Bonari - Department of Veterinary, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Sciences, Islamic Azad University of Shabestar, Shabestar, Iran.
Navideh Mirzakhani - Department of Pathobiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Amol University of Special Modern Technologies, Amol, Iran.

Background and Objective: Sour tea with scientific name of Hibiscus sabdariffa is made of ‎floral leaf (sepal) of Sour Tea plant and is consumed in hot or cold drink in many countries. In ‎traditional medicine, several properties have been mentioned, one of the most important of ‎which is the therapeutic effect in kidney diseases. The objective of this study was to evaluate ‎the protective effect of Hibiscus sabdariffa on kidneys, glomeruli and urinary tubules in lead ‎acetate exposed rats.‎Materials and Methods: In this study, 48 wistar rats were randomly divided in four groups. ‎The first group was control that did not receive any medication. The second group received ‎‎50 mg/kg lead acetate by gavage for two weeks, the third group received Hibiscus sabdariffa ‎‎250 mg/kg by gavage for four weeks, and the fourth group received lead acetate and Hibiscus ‎sabdariffa at the same time. At the end of the study period, kidneys of the rats were removed ‎from their body and they were examined for histopathological examination.‎Results: The histological analysis of the renal tissue in the animals of control and tea treated ‎groups revealed a normal architecture of renal tissue with intact glomeruli and tubules in ‎cortex and medulla. In lead acetate exposed group, glomerulosclerosis, shrinkage of ‎glomeruli, glomerulonephritis, ATN (Acute Tubular Necrosis) of proximal convoluted tubules ‎with pyknotic nuclei of epithelial lining of proximal convoluted tubules, interstitial nephritis, ‎hyperemia along with slight fibrosis and hyaline cast in tubules of medulla were observed. ‎The lead acetate + tea treated group showed a near to normal architecture of the renal tissue ‎with slight to moderate hydropic degeneration in the proximal convoluted tubules.‎Conclusion: Histopathological examination of the kidneys showed that the use of Hibiscus ‎sabdariffa reduce renal injury of lead acetate exposed animals and eliminate the adverse ‎effects of it.

Lead Acetate, Hibiscus sabdariffa, Renal injury, Kidney, Rat