Effects of N-Acetylcysteine/Deferoxamine, Taurine and RC-3095 on Respiratory Chain Complexes and Creatine Kinase Activities in Rat Brain After Sepsis

Abstract

The pathogenesis of sepsis is characterized by an overwhelming systemic inflammatory response that can lead to multiple organ failure. Considering that we have recently demonstrated that mitochondrial respiratory chain and creatine kinase (CK) are altered in the brain of rats after cecal ligation and perforation (CLP) and that a combination of N-acetylcysteine/deferoxamine (NAC/DFX), taurine and RC-3095 were shown to be an effective treatment of sepsis, we investigated whether the alterations of these enzymes may be reversed by these drugs. The results demonstrated that CLP inhibited complexes I and II, and that all the treatments were able to reverse this inhibition in all brain areas studied in the present work. On the other hand, complexes III and IV were not affected by sepsis neither by any of the treatments. An increase in CK activity in brain of rats 12 h after CLP was also verified; the administration of NAC/DFX and taurine reversed the increase in CK activity in hippocampus, cerebral cortex, cerebellum and striatum. On the other hand, RC-3095 significantly decreased CK activity, when compared to sham group in all brain areas studied. This is a preliminary study which showed beneficial effects of the treatments we proposed.

Dietary taurine supplementation improves breast meat quality in chronic heat‐stressed broilers via activating the Nrf2 pathway and protecting mitochondria from oxidative attack

“…Taurine is not involved in peptide bond formation, but it has various biological functions, such as bile acid conjugation, maintenance of calcium homeostasis, osmoregulation, and membrane stabilization . In addition, antioxidant activity is another widely recognized function of taurine . Though taurine is a very stable molecule and difficult to oxidize, the sulfur‐containing acid still has an indirect antioxidant function, either by decreasing the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation or by improving the antioxidant defense system …”

“…[8][9][10] In addition, antioxidant activity is another widely recognized function of taurine. 11,12 Though taurine is a very stable molecule and difficult to oxidize, the sulfur-containing acid still has an indirect antioxidant function, either by decreasing the reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation or by improving the antioxidant defense system. 13,14 It has been reported that taurine can alleviate oxidative impairment caused by hydrogen peroxide via activating the nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) pathway and enhancing the heme oxygenase 1 (HMOX1) expression.…”

The effect of N-acetyl cysteine on serum glutathione, TNF-α and tissue malondialdehyde levels in the treatment of sepsis

“…[2] Specific agents like N-acetyl cysteine (NAC), NAME (N-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester), and desferrioxamine have been tried in some recent experimental studies. [3,4] NAC is a thiol compound with potent antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties. It is also a well-known glutathione (GSH) precursor.…”

The alleviative effects of taurine supplementation on growth, antioxidant enzyme activities, hepatopancreas morphology and mRNA expression of heat shock proteins in freshwater prawn Macrobrachium nipponense (De Haan) exposed to dietary lead stress

“…Antioxidant activity is one of the most important biological functions of taurine (Cassol et al, 2010;Das et al, 2012). Previous research suggested that the interaction of taurine with the plasma membrane results in a modulation of the membrane lipid ratio, thereby leading to a decrease in membrane fluidity and increased resistance to oxidative damage (Hamaguchi et al, 1991).…”