Hydrogen Gas Protects Kidneys from Muscle Damage in Rats
Inhalation of 4% and 67% hydrogen ameliorates oxidative stress, inflammation, apoptosis, and necroptosis in a rat model of glycerol-induced acute kidney injury
This research was done in animals. Results in animals often don't carry over to people.
- Evidence type
- Animal study (rat)
- Authors
- Jun-Li Xue, Bo-Yan Liu, Min Zhao, Meng-Yu Zhang, Ming-Yue Wang, Qian-Qian Gu, Xiao-Yi Zhang, Shu-Cun Qin
- Journal
- Medical Gas Research
- Year
- 2023
- PMID
- 36204787
- Study Type
- Rat
- Delivery
- Gas
- Dose
- 4% and 67% hydrogen inhalation for 72 hours after glycerol injection
- H₂ concentration
- 4% and 67% H2 gas
- Duration
- 3 days
- Outcome
- Positive
- Peer Reviewed
- Yes
- Cited by
- 16 (OpenAlex, as of November 2026)
- Country
- China
TL;DR
Breathing in hydrogen gas can help protect the kidneys from damage caused by a muscle injury condition called rhabdomyolysis.
Key Finding
Inhaling hydrogen gas at both 4% and 67% concentrations reduced oxidative stress, inflammation, and cell death in rat kidneys damaged by glycerol injection, with higher concentrations producing better tissue-level improvements.
Summary
Researchers tested whether breathing hydrogen gas could protect rat kidneys from damage caused by glycerol injection, which mimics a condition called rhabdomyolysis (muscle breakdown that injures the kidneys). They found that inhaling hydrogen gas at two different concentrations (4% and 67%) reduced harmful chemical reactions, inflammation, and cell death in the kidneys, with the higher concentration showing better improvement in tissue damage.
Practical Takeaway
This rat study suggests hydrogen gas inhalation may help protect kidneys from rhabdomyolysis-related injury through multiple protective mechanisms. However, this is early-stage animal research with no human trials yet, so it's unclear whether these results would apply to people or what the optimal hydrogen dose might be.
Abstract (excerpt)
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is the major complication of rhabdomyolysis (RM) clinically, which is usually mimicked by glycerol injection in basic research. Oxidative stress, inflammatory response and apoptosis are recognized to play important roles in development of this disease. Recently, numerous…