Cardioprotective Effects of Bromelain on Wistar Rat (Rattus norvegicus) Cardiomyocytes Exposed to Doxorubicin

Abstract

Introduction: Doxorubicin (Dox) is an effective anthracycline whose clinical use is limited by cardiotoxicity. Bromelain, a proteolytic enzyme from Ananas comosus, has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and may confer cardioprotection. Methods: We conducted an in vivo posttest-only control group study in female Wistar rats (≈8 weeks, 150–200 g; n=5/group) allocated to control (P1), Dox 15 mg/kg intraperitoneally (P2), or Dox 15 mg/kg plus bromelain 40 mg/kg orally 30 min prior (P3). Four hours post-treatment, serum CK-MB was measured by autoanalyzer and NT-proBNP by electrochemiluminescence immunoassay. Normality (Shapiro–Wilk) and homogeneity (Levene) were met; pairwise comparisons used independent t-tests (α=0.05). Results: Mean±SD CK-MB (U/L) were control 0.3530±0.0373, Dox 1.3756±0.0544, Dox+bromelain 1.0218±0.1086; p-values: control vs Dox 0.013, control vs Dox+bromelain 0.026, Dox vs Dox+bromelain 0.037. Mean±SD NT-proBNP (pg/mL) were control 0.3932±0.0304, Dox 1.3924±0.0579, Dox+bromelain 1.0826±0.0647; p-values: control vs Dox 0.028, control vs Dox+bromelain 0.012, Dox vs Dox+bromelain 0.039. Conclusion: Bromelain significantly attenuated Dox-induced increases in CK-MB and NT-proBNP in Wistar rats but did not restore biomarker levels to control values, supporting a cardioprotective effect and warranting larger, longer-term studies to define dose–response, durability, and mechanisms.