Do vitamin E supplements in diets for laboratory animals jeopardize findings in animal models of disease?
Free Radic Biol Med
; 26(3-4): 472-81, 1999 Feb.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-9895240
ABSTRACT
Vitamin E has been supplemented to the diets of farm animals to improve fertility, health, growth rates and quality of animal products. Because of the positive experience obtained in farm animals, vitamin E has been added in increasing amounts to the diets of laboratory animals. Today, vitamin E levels in standard rodent maintenance diets range from 30 mg/kg (France, United States), 90-120 mg/kg (Netherlands, United Kingdom) to as much as 200 mg/kg (Germany). While increasing fertility and health of laboratory animals, these vitamin E supplements affect diverse pathophysiological conditions and thus the outcome of animal models of disease. Because of the large variability of vitamin E levels between laboratories within and between different countries, results obtained in established animal models may no longer be comparable and/or reproducible. Researchers should be aware of these vitamin E supplements and carefully control for potential effects in their respective animal models that involve--or may involve--the generation of reactive oxygen species.
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Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Vitamin E
/
Dietary Supplements
Type of study:
Diagnostic_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
Language:
En
Journal:
Free Radic Biol Med
Year:
1999
Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Germany