Oxidative renal injury and lipoprotein oxidation in hypercholesterolemic atherogenesis: Role of eicosapentaenoate-lipoate (EPA-LA) derivative

Redox regulation of hemodynamics response to diadenosine tetraphosphate an agonist of P2 receptors and renal function in diet-induced hypercholesterolemic rats

Hypercholesterolemia and oxidative stress may lead to disturbances in the renal microvasculature in response to vasoactive agents, including P2 receptors (P2R) agonists. We investigated the renal microvascular response to diadenosine tetraphosphate (Ap₄A), an agonist of P2R, in diet‐induced hypercholesteremic rats over 28 days, supplemented in the last 10 days with tempol (2 mM) or DL‐buthionine‐(S,R)‐sulfoximine (BSO, 20 mM) in the drinking water. Using laser Doppler flowmetry, renal blood perfusion in the cortex and medulla (CBP, MBP) was measured during the infusion of Ap₄A. This induced a biphasic response in the CBP: a phase of rapid decrease was followed by one of rapid increase extended for 30 min in both the normocholesterolemic and hypercholesterolemic rats. The phase of decreased CBP was not affected by tempol or BSO in either group. Early and extended increases in CBP were prevented by tempol in the hypercholesterolemia rats, while, in the normocholesterolemic rats, only the extended increase in CBP was affected by tempol; BSO prevented extended increase in CBP in normocholesterolemic rats. MBP response is not affected by hypercholesterolemia. The hypercholesterolemic rats were characterized by increased urinary albumin and 8‐isoPGF_2α excretion. Moreover, BSO increased the urinary excretion of nephrin in the hypercholesterolemic rats but, similar to tempol, did not affect the excretion of albumin in their urine. The results suggest the important role of redox balance in the extracellular nucleotide regulation of the renal vasculature and glomerular injury in hypercholesterolemia.

Effects of nutritional and excessive levels of selenium on red blood cells of rats fed a high cholesterol diet

In this study, we investigated the effects of selenium (Se) on the properties of erythrocytes and atherogenic index in the presence and absence of high cholesterol diet (HCD). The effect of selected two different doses (1 μg and 50 μg Se/kg/body weight) on HCD-induced oxidative stress was investigated. The hemolysis of the erythrocytes of the HCD rats as well as by high levels of selenium or their combination was markedly increased. Likewise, atherogenic index and plasma glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity were significantly increased in the same groups of rats compared to control ones. In contrast, paraoxonase activity, glutathione levels and protein thiol levels, catalase, GPx, and superoxide dismutase activities were significantly decreased in rats that received the HCD, high selenium dose, or their combination. Malondialdehyde and protein carbonyl levels in the plasma and red blood cells were significantly increased by HCD and high selenium dose administration. Co-administration of selenium at low dose with or without an HCD restored all of the investigated parameters to near-normal values. The results of this study suggest that excess selenium administration with HCD worsens the atherogenic index and enhances formation of oxidized red blood cells. At dosage levels in the nutritional range such as 1 μg Se/kg body weight, selenium ameliorates the atherogenic index and preserves the antioxidant capacity of the erythrocytes.

Sub-chronic concomitant ingestion of L-arginine and monosodium glutamate improves feed efficiency, lipid metabolism and antioxidant capacity in male Wistar rats

The use of L-arginine (ARG) is common in supplements, whereas, Monosodium Glutamate (MSG) is widely used as flavor enhancing food additive. Thus, ARG and MSG may be present together in human diets, warranting this study aimed at investigating the effect of concomitant ingestion of ARG and MSG on some biochemical indices in male rats. Twelve male albino rats were grouped into three (n = 4) and concomitantly exposed to 0:0, 20:5 and 60:15 mg kg(-1) of ARG:MSG. Exposure was peroral and every twenty four h for 28 days. ARG plus MSG treatment caused a significant (p < or = 0.05) increase in Feed Efficiency (FE) (Low dose: 5.23 +/- 22%; High dose: 5.60 +/- 11%), whereas, it decreased (p < or = 0.05) the serum Total Cholesterol (T-Chol) (low dose: 80.83 +/- 0.11 mg/100 mL, high dose: 92.55 +/- 0.14 mg/100 mL), triacylglycerol (TAG) (low dose: 179.91 +/- 0.09 mg/100 mL, high dose: 119.77 +/- 0.32 mg/100 mL) and malondialdehyde (MDA) (low dose: 5.00 +/- 0.07 mg/100 mL, high dose: 24.36 +/- 0.10 mg/100 mL) concentrations of the rats in a dose dependent manner. However, (at the high dose) the increase in Body Weight (BW) (0.08 +/- 0.07 kg), Feed Intake (FI) (0.40 +/- 0.03 kg) and Water Intake (WI) (0.65 +/- 0.18 L) induced by ARG plus MSG exposure was not significant (p < or = 0.05), suggesting non treatment related effect on these routine parameters. However, exposure to ARG plus MSG may significantly improve feed efficiency, lipid metabolism and antioxidant capacity in the male rats.

Eicosapentaenoic acid restores diabetic tubular injury through regulating oxidative stress and mitochondrial apoptosis

The present study was designed to elucidate a possible mechanism of hyperglycemia-induced tubular injury and to examine a therapeutic potential of dietary eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) for the prevention of diabetic kidney disease. Utilizing streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice, the extents of albuminuria and histological injuries were monitored at 2 wk after diabetic induction. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, apoptosis, and hypoxia in the kidney were evaluated by immunohistochemistry and Western blotting. An in vitro study was performed using rat proximal tubular cells (NRK-52E) to confirm the protective effect of EPA for methylglyoxal (MG)-induced ROS generation and staurosporine (STS)-induced mitochondrial apoptosis. The extents of albuminuria and histological tubular injuries were significantly lower in EPA-treated diabetic mice compared with untreated diabetic mice. The levels of lipid peroxidation product (4-hydroxy-2-nonenal), oxidative DNA damage (8-hydoxy-deoxyguanosine), and mitochondrial apoptosis (TUNEL, caspase-9, cleaved caspase-3, and cytochrome c release) in the tubular cells were also significantly lower in EPA-treated diabetic mice. Furthermore, hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1α expression was significantly upregulated in the kidney tissues from EPA-treated mice compared with untreated diabetic mice. MG-induced ROS overproduction and STS-induced mitochondrial apoptosis in NRK-52E cells were significantly reduced by EPA treatment in vitro. These results indicated that the ROS generation and mitochondrial apoptosis were involved in hyperglycemia-induced tubular injury and EPA had a beneficial effect by suppressing ROS generation and mitochondrial apoptosis partly through augmentation of an HIF-1α response in diabetic kidney disease.