El-Shehry, Mona S. E. FAmrymi, Rafa AAtia, TarekLotfy, Bassant M. MAhmed, Salma H. AQutb, Sarah AAli, Sara BMohamed, Ayman SMousa, Mohamed RDamanhory, Ahmed AMetawee, Mostafa ESakr, Hader I2024-01-112024-01-112023-12DOI 10.7717/peerj.16576http://repository.msa.edu.eg/xmlui/handle/123456789/5810Background: Hemolytic anemia (HA) is a serious health condition resulting from reduced erythrocytes’ average life span. Echinochrome (Ech) is a dark-red pigment found in shells and spines of sea urchins. Aim: Studying the potential therapeutic effect of Ech on phenylhydrazine (PHZ)- induced HA in rats. Methods: Eighteen rats were divided into three groups (n = 6): the control group, the phenylhydrazine-induced HA group and the Ech group, injected intraperitoneally with PHZ and supplemented with oral Ech daily for 6 days. Results: Ech resulted in a considerable increase in RBCs, WBCs, and platelets counts, hemoglobin, reduced glutathione, catalase, and glutathione-S-transferase levels, and a significant decrease in aspartate & alanine aminotransferases, alkaline phosphatase, gamma-glutamyl transferase, bilirubin, creatinine, urea, urate, malondialdehyde & nitric oxide levels in anemic rats. Histopathological examination of liver and kidney tissue samples showed marked improvement. Conclusion: Ech ameliorated phenylhydrazine-induced HA with a hepatorenal protective effect owing to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.enHemolytic Anemia, Echinochrome, Oxidative stress, PhenylhydrazineArticleDOI 10.7717/peerj.16576