Geraniol, alone and in combination with pioglitazone, ameliorates fructose-induced metabolic syndrome in rats via the modulation of both inflammatory and oxidative stress status.

Geraniol (GO) potent antitumor and chemopreventive effects are attributed to its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. In the current study, the potential efficacy of GO (250 mg/kg) in ameliorating metabolic syndrome (MetS) induced by fructose in drinking water was elucidated. Moreover, the effect of pioglitazone (5 and 10 mg/kg; PIO) and the possible interaction of the co-treatment of GO with PIO5 were studied in the MetS model. After 4 weeks of treatment, GO and/or PIO reduced the fasting blood glucose and the glycemic excursion in the intraperitoneal glucose tolerance test. GO and PIO5/10 restrained visceral adiposity and partly the body weight gain. The decreased level of peroxisome proliferator activated receptor (PPAR)-γ transcriptional activity in the visceral adipose tissue of MetS rats was increased by single treatment regimens. Though GO did not affect MetS-induced hyperinsulinemia, PIO5/10 lowered it. Additionally, GO and PIO5/10 suppressed glycated hemoglobin and the receptor for advanced glycated end products (RAGE). These single regimens also ameliorated hyperuricemia, the disrupted lipid profile, and the elevated systolic blood pressure evoked by MetS. The rise in serum transaminases, interleukin-1ß, and tumor necrosis factor-α, as well as hepatic lipid peroxides and nitric oxide (NO) was lowered by the single treatments to different extents. Moreover, hepatic non-protein thiols, as well as serum NO and adiponectin were enhanced by single regimens. Similar effects were reached by the combination of GO with PIO5; however, a potentiative interaction was noted on fasting serum insulin level, while synergistic effects were reflected as improved insulin sensitivity, as well as reduced RAGE and triglycerides. Therefore, GO via the transcriptional activation of PPAR-γ reduces inflammation and free radical injury produced by MetS. Thereby, these effects provide novel mechanistic insights on GO management of MetS associated critical risk factors. Moreover, the co-administration of GO to PIO5 exalted the antidiabetic drug anti-MetS efficacy.

Westernized-like-diet-fed rats: effect on glucose homeostasis, lipid profile, and adipocyte hormones and their modulation by rosiglitazone and glimepiride.

Wersternized diet, containing high fat diet intake combined with high consumption of softdrinks, is accused with the emerge of modern epidemic obesity and diabesity. Therefore, we aimed to study the effect of this diet combination on the homeostasis of glucose, lipids, and some adipohormones in rats and to simulate the metabolic perturbations induced by the unhealthy Westernized diet intake, leading to the development of type 2 diabetes. To achieve this, we divided male Wistar rats (80-120 g) into two main groups: the first was fed commercial normal fat diet and the second received an in-house-prepared high-fat diet (HFD), combined with fructose in drinking water for a period of 6 weeks, followed by a subdiabetogenic dose of streptozotocin (STZ) (35 mg/kg) to produce frank hyperglycemia. The effect of this diet alone or after 2 weeks of treatment with rosiglitazone or glimepiride on glucose homeostasis, lipid profile, and levels of resistin and leptin was studied. The HFD/fructose/STZ diet elevated fasting plasma glucose, fructosamine, insulin, and homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) index, as well as serum triglycerides (TGs), total cholesterol (TC), and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, with a decrease in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Hepatic TG and TC levels, as well as serum activities of aspartate transaminase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), were increased, suggesting a diet-induced hepatic steatosis, beside the increased levels of serum resistin and leptin. Rosiglitazone corrected the altered parameters measured, except for liver TGs; similarly, glimepiride reinstated the inverted parameters but raised insulin level and, consequently, the HOMA index. These results show that this diet could be used to induce an effect that mimics human type 2 diabetes with its metabolic disturbances and is suitable for screening the antidiabetic agents used for management of this disease.

Effect of melatonin and nifedipine on some antioxidant enzymes and different energy fuels in the blood and brain of global ischemic rats.

The brain normally derives most of its energy from the aerobic oxidation of glucose and therefore it must be nourished with a rich supply of both glucose and oxygen. Interference with the blood supply, such as in ischemia, could shift the brain to search for another source of energy and to spare its own glucose. Ischemia results not only in energy fuel disturbance, but also in free radical formation and Ca(2+) homeostasis disruption. Therefore, our investigations studied the influence of ischemia on energy fuels, on some natural free radical scavengers, and the relationship between the changes of these parameters in brain and blood. Each of these was also studied under the influence of melatonin, a well-known free radical scavenger, and nifedipine, a Ca(2+)-channel blocker and antioxidant, during ischemia followed by reperfusion (I/R). Adult male Wistar rats were subjected to global ischemia by occlusion of the two carotid arteries for 1 hr (group I), followed by reperfusion for another hour in group II. Drugs were injected after ischemia (group I), and before or after reperfusion onset in the second group. Two series of animals were used. In the first series the effect of the two drugs on the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione reductase (GR), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) was investigated in the cytosolic fraction of four brain areas, viz., cortex (CC), thalamus/hypothalamus (T/TH), midbrain (MB) and medulla, pons and cerebellum (MPC). Moreover, the level of both SOD and GR in the erythocytes of these rats was also estimated. In the second series, we studied the effect of each drug on the content of glucose and beta-hydroxybutyrate (beta-HB) in whole brain, in addition to the plasma levels of glucose, beta-HB and lactate. The results showed that (i), ischemia elevated the brain levels of LDH and beta-HB, as well as the plasma level of glucose, beta-HB, lactate and erythocytic GR. Conversely, it lowered glucose, SOD and GR levels in the brain; (ii), reperfusion reversed the ischemic effect on all the previously altered parameters except for plasma levels of lactate and glucose; (iii), melatonin (10 mg/kg, i.p) and nifedipine (1.5 mg/kg, i.p), restored the energy fuel levels in the brain of ischemic and I/R rats, as well as the ischemic effect on the erythocyte activities of SOD and GR. Furthermore, both drugs reversed I/R effect on the cytosolic activities of the antioxidant enzymes. We conclude that melatonin and nifedipine are both neuroprotective with improvement in the antioxidant system and energy fuels.