A comparative study of adrenalin and fluocinolon induced oxidative stress in male wistar rats

Hormone secretion by the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical (HPA) axis is modulated by multiple factors which include the circadian rhythm, various types of stressors and glucocorticoids. Treatment with synthetic glucocorticoids as e.g. dexamethasone or dermocorticosteroids and repeated immobilization stress, decreases the total body weight gain of animals by disturbing the HPA axis function and accelerating the catabolism of the organism. Synthetic glucocorticoids are widely used as anti-inflammatory and anti-allergic drugs. Neverteheless, their administration may cause side effects in the normal functioning of several organs. Starting from the above findings and from the important physiological roles of the glucocorticoids in the metabolism, we investigated the reactions of the adrenal and thymus, the evolution of the body and organ weight and the level of the free radicals after adrenaline- and fluocinolon stress. In this study, we used electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy for the direct detection of free radical content in the organs o f stressed Wistar rats. We followed the changes of the blood glucose level, body weight,structural modification and whole redox state of the rats during adrenaline and Fluocinolon-acetonid N treatment, as endogenous and exogenous sources of elevated glucocoticoid levels. We found a relationship between changes of the redox state and modified homeostasis of the organism, as an effect of elevated glucocorticoid levels. The oxidative stress induced by adrenalin treatment seemed to be an inducer rather than the result of the tissue damage.