Oxidative Stress and Endogenous Antioxidant Vitamins: Relationship in Carbon Tetrachloride (CCl4) Induced Experimental Rats Model

DOI: 10.21276/haya.2017.2.9.2 Abstract: The role of oxidative stress in the pathogenesis of various diseases has been established. Maintaining the steady balance between reactive oxygen species and natural antioxidants is a crucial factor, and could probably serve as a major mechanism in preventing damage by oxidative stress induced by toxic substances. A comparative study and correlation analysis of malondialdehyde (MDA), serum vitamins (A, E and C) and the redox active metals (Cu, Fe and Zn) in CCl4 induced oxidative stress in albino rats with various doses of CCl4 were determined. The serum levels of oxidative stress markers were compared between the normal and test groups. The result showed a significant increase in the serum vitamins A and E in the CCl4 induced oxidative stress rats compared to control rats (P<0.05). However, the serum level of vitamin C was not statistically different compared to control rats (P>0.05). MDA correlated strongly and positively with vitamin C (r=0.94), Vitamin A(r=0.87), Vitamin E and Fe(r= 0.90 and 0.87 respectively) while the serum MDA showed a weak positive relationships with Zn(r=0.02) and Cu(r=0.47).Thus, the increased serum levels of some antioxidant vitamins and the redox metals in the experimental rats as observed in this study could be a compensatory regulation in response to induced oxidative stress by CCl4.The evidence from this study lends credence to the ability of endogenous antioxidants to counter the effects of free radicals generated by hepatotoxic substances and maintain the steady-state of prooxidant-antioxidant balance in the system.