Figure 1.

Melatonin protects against radiation-induced pulmonary damage and oxidative stress. (a) Morphological observations obtained from the control, radiation, radiation + melatonin (i.p.), and melatonin groups. Representative light microscopy photographs of HE are shown (magnified 400x). (b) Masson's trichrome staining of the lung (indicates collagen deposition). (c) Effects of melatonin on levels of MDA and SOD from lung homogenates. (d) Melatonin attenuated cytokine expression in the lung. Levels of cytokine secretion of IL-1β and IL-18 in BALF were measured by ELISA. All data are presented as means ± SEM (n = 6 in each group). ^∗ p < 0.05 vs. the radiation group.