Protective effect of omega-3 fatty acids on diethylnitrosamine toxicity in rats.

OBJECTIVES: In this study, it was aimed to investigate the effect of n-3 fatty acids (n-3 FA) on diethylnitrosamine (DEN) toxicity with respect to alterations including nitric oxide (NO) formation, uric acid level as well as some liver related enzymes such as aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activities in rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Forty male Wistar albino rats were used as animal materials. Animals were divided into 4 groups and treated as follows: Rats in group 1 (control) were intraperitoneally (i.p) injected with single dose of saline; rats in group 2 were i.p. injected with DEN at a dose of 150 mg/kg/body weight; rats in group 3 were treated with DEN (via single i.p. injection at 150 mg/kg/body weight) plus n-3 FA (at a dose of 0.4 g /kg/day via subcutaneous route in fish oil) for 7 days, and group 4 received n-3 FA via s.c. route at a dose of 0.4 g/kg/day in fish oil for 7 days. The plasma samples were analyzed for NO, uric acid levels as well as for activities of AST, ALT and ALP. RESULTS: Uric acid level was lower in DEN group than in control. In addition, NO level and AST, ALT, ALP activities in DEN group were significantly higher than in control. Nitric oxide concentration, ALT and ALP activities in DEN + n-3 FA treated rats were lower than in DEN alone. Uric acid level in DEN + n-3 FA group was higher than in DEN group. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that n-3 fatty acids could ameliorate the toxic effects of DEN in part by means of its free radical scavenging activity and may be of therapeutic value in the protection of liver against toxic effects of DEN.  

Role of exogenous melatonin on adriamycin-induced changes in the rat heart.

AIM: The protective effect of melatonin on adriamycin (ADM)-induced cardiotoxicity was investigated in the rat heart. Melatonin is a pineal hormone with free radical scavenging activity on oxidants; therefore it may decrease the ADM-induced oxidative stress and cardiotoxicity so that therapeutic efficacy might be enhanced. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Wistar rats in 4 groups were treated with saline (control), melatonin (MEL), adriamycin (ADM) and melatonin plus adriamycin (MEL+ADM). RESULTS: Adriamycin given at a single dose of 15 mg/kg significantly increased lipid peroxidation products as measured by thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS). Melatonin (5 mg/kg bw) given 2 days before and 7 days after ADM treatment reduced TBARS level. Adriamycin significantly reduced superoxide dismutase activity which was elevated by melatonin treatment. Additionally, ADM significantly increased catalase enzyme activity while melatonin normalized the ADM induced alteration in activity of catalase. CONCLUSIONS: The combined use of ADM and melatonin reduces the threat of cardiomyopathy. Melatonin seems to hold promise as a therapeutic treatment and can be recommended as an adjunct in antitumor therapy as a safe and effective protection against acute ADM-induced cardiotoxicity.

Genotypic identification of some lactic acid bacteria by amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis and investigation of their potential usage as starter culture combinations in Beyaz cheese manufacture.

In this study, 2 different starter culture combinations were prepared for cheesemaking. Starter culture combinations were formed from 8 strains of lactic acid bacteria. They were identified as Lactococcus lactis ssp. lactis (2 strains), Lactobacillus plantarum (5 strains), and Lactobacillus paraplantarum (1 strain) by amplified fragment length polymorphism analysis. The effects of these combinations on the physicochemical and microbiological properties of Beyaz cheeses were investigated. These cheeses were compared with Beyaz cheeses that were produced with a commercial starter culture containing Lc. lactis ssp. lactis and Lc. lactis ssp. cremoris as control. All cheeses were ripened in brine at 4 degrees C for 90 d. Dry matter, fat in dry matter, titratable acidity, pH, salt in dry matter, total N, water-soluble N, and ripening index were determined. Sodium dodecyl sulfate-PAGE patterns of cheeses showed that alpha(S)-casein and beta-casein degraded slightly during the ripening period. Lactic acid bacteria, total mesophilic aerobic bacteria, yeast, molds, and coliforms were also counted. All analyses were repeated twice during d 7, 30, 60, and 90. The starter culture combinations were found to be significantly different from the control group in pH, salt content, and lactobacilli, lactococci, and total mesophilic aerobic bacteria counts, whereas the cheeses were similar in fat, dry matter content, and coliform, yeast, and mold counts. The sensory analysis of cheeses indicated that textural properties of control cheeses presented somewhat lower scores than those of the test groups. The panelists preferred the tastes of treatment cheeses, whereas cheeses with starter culture combinations and control cheeses had similar scores for appearance and flavor. These results indicated that both starter culture combinations are suitable for Beyaz cheese production.

Plasma dispositions of ivermectin, doramectin and moxidectin following subcutaneous administration in rabbits.

This study evaluated the comparative plasma dispositions of ivermectin (IVM), doramectin (DRM) and moxidectin (MXD) following subcutaneous administration in rabbits. Fifteen New Zealand white rabbits were allocated into three groups of five animals each. The animals in each group received IVM, DRM or MXD by subcutaneous injection at a single dose of 0.3 mg/kg. Blood samples were collected at various times between 1 h and 40 days after treatment and the plasma samples were analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography using fluorescence detection. Moxidectin was absorbed faster from the injection site and reached the peak plasma concentration (C(max)) significantly earlier than IVM and DRM. There was no significant difference in C(max) values among the three molecules, whereas the area under the concentration-time curves of DRM (258.40 ng.d/mL) and IVM (191.62 ng.d/mL) was significantly higher than that of MXD (83.17 ng.d/mL). The mean plasma residence time and terminal half-life (t(1/2lambdaz)) were longer for DRM (7.52 and 4.48 days, respectively) and MXD (8.97 and 8.16 days, respectively) compared with IVM (4.73 and 2.75 days, respectively). Considering the pharmacokinetic parameters for the parent molecules, the persistence of DRM and MXD are significantly longer than IVM and this may have a positive effect on their efficacy in rabbits following subcutaneous administration or utility relating to interdosing interval.

Acute tamoxifen treatment increases nitric oxide level but not total antioxidant capacity and adenosine deaminase activity in the plasma of rabbits.

Tamoxifen is a synthetic non steroidal anti-estrogen used to treat patients with breast cancer and healthy subjects with high risk of breast cancer. It was aimed to study the short term effects of tamoxifen on the plasma total antioxidant capacity (TAC), nitric oxide (NO) and the adenosine deaminase activity (ADA) in healthy rabbits. Sixteen healthy New Zealand rabbits were allocated to 2 groups including controls and tamoxifen treated animals. Controls received a single application of 0.9% saline via oral route while the treated rabbits received orally tamoxifen (dissolved in 0.9% saline, at a dose of 5 mg/kg). Blood samples were collected at 6 and 24 hours following the treatments. Plasma TAC and ADA were not affected by Tamoxifen treatment. However, NO level in tamoxifen treated group was increased at 24 hours following tamoxifen treatment as compared to controls. In conclusion, acute tamoxifen treatment may not affect the antioxidant status and cellular immunity, as evidenced by unaltered TAC and ADA. However, NO level was increased as early as 24 hours following tamoxifen treatment.

Caffeic acid phenethyl ester prevents ovary ischemia/reperfusion injury in rabbits.

Protective effect of caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) on ovary ischemia/reperfusion (IR) injury was investigated in this study. Twenty four New Zealand rabbits were divided into 4 groups as follows: group S served as sham. Group C was intraperitoneally injected with CAPE (8.5mg/kg). In groups E+IR and C+IR, 1% ethanol and CAPE was given intraperitoneally before torsion, respectively. Then, the ovaries were subjected to IR in both groups. Ovary reduced glutathione (GSH) level and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity in group E+IR were significantly reduced compared to that of group S. GSH level and GSH-Px activity was significantly increased in group C+I/R. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and catalase (CAT) activity in group E+I/R was significantly higher than in group S. CAT activity was decreased to normal levels by CAPE treatment in group C+I/R, while TBARS in group C+IR was significantly reduced compared to that of E+IR. According to histopathological examination, severe congestion, hemorrhage, edema and leukocyte infiltration were observed in E+I/R group. CAPE prominently reduced degenerative effects of IR injury thus it alleviates free radical damage. In conclusion, CAPE which is able to prevent IR-induced injury in the ovaries may be of therapeutic value before the surgical correction.

The possible protective effect of L-carnitine on tilmicosin-induced cardiotoxicity in mice.

The protective effect of L-carnitine was investigated against tilmicosin-induced cardiotoxic effects including blood creatine kinase (CK), CK-MB, total sialic acid as well as the alterations in glutathione and malondialdehyde concentrations in mice. Thirty-two Balb/C mice were divided into four groups including group 1 (control), group 2 (L-carnitine, s.c., 500 mg/kg for 5 days), group 3 (tilmicosin, s.c., single dose of 75 mg/kg) and group 4 (L-carnitine plus tilmicosin). Serum CK, CK-MB and malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were significantly (P < 0.05) higher in group 3 compared with those of other groups. Total sialic acid level in group 3 was found to be significantly (P < 0.05) higher than that in groups 1 and 2, as well. Contrary to these results, glutathione level in group 3 was found to be significantly (P < 0.05) lower than that in groups 1 and 2. In group 4, serum CK, CK-MB, MDA and total sialic acid levels were found to be significantly (P < 0.05) lower than those in group 3. These results suggest that tilmicosin is cardiotoxic in mice as evidenced by higher total sialic acid, CK and CK-MB. In addition, tilmicosin caused the decrease in glutathione and increase in MDA levels. However, administration of L-carnitine could ameliorate these adverse toxic effects of tilmicosin in mice.