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Alpha-tocopherol pretreatment improves endothelium-dependent vasodilation in aortic strips of young and aging rats exposed to oxidative stress

  • Part IV: Cardiovascular Therapeutics
  • Published:
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Abstract

Acetylcholine-induced, endothelium-dependent relaxation of norepinephrine-precontracted aortic strips, was severely impaired after exposure to a hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase reaction generating oxygen radicals. This effect was more evident in aortic strips of aging rats (24 months old) in comparison to young rats (3 months old). The addition of authentic ·NO (1 μM) completely relaxed aortic strips exposed to oxidative stress both in young and aging rats. In vitro EPR measurements showed that the ·NO signal was reduced by enzymatic O2-generating reaction.

The activity of a partial purified preparation of constitutive NO synthase from rat cerebellum was significantly decreased after exposure to exogenous oxygen radicals. Pretreatment of aortic strips with 100 μM alpha-tocopherol-phosphate, produced a significant improvement of acetylcholine-dependent relaxation in the aortic strips exposed to oxidative stress, particularly in the aged vessel. The content of malondialdehyde in aortic tissue did not change after oxidative stress or alpha-tocopherol pretreatment. Alpha-tocopherol was unable to recover the NO synthase activity depressed in vitro by hypoxanthine/xanthine oxidase reaction. This study confirms that an oxidative stress impairs the endothelium-mediated vasodilation. Alpha-tocopherol pretreatment protects the vessel against this damage. The mechanism of action of alpha-tocopherol is unknown, but seems unrelated to an antioxidant activity.

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Abbreviations

ACh:

acethylcholine

EPR:

electron paramagnetic resonance

ROS:

reactive oxygen species

MDA:

malondialdehyde

NE:

norepinephrine

cNOS:

constitutive nitric oxide synthase

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biochemistry ‘G. Moruzzi’, Centre of Research on Heart Metabolism, University of Bologna, v.Irnerio 48, 40126, Bologna, Italy

    Carlo Guarnieri, Emanuele Giordano, Claudio Muscari & Claudio Marcello Caldarera

  2. Department of Organic Chemistry, University of Bologna, Italy

    Loris Grossi

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  1. Carlo Guarnieri
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  2. Emanuele Giordano
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  3. Claudio Muscari
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  4. Loris Grossi
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  5. Claudio Marcello Caldarera
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Guarnieri, C., Giordano, E., Muscari, C. et al. Alpha-tocopherol pretreatment improves endothelium-dependent vasodilation in aortic strips of young and aging rats exposed to oxidative stress. Mol Cell Biochem 157, 223–228 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00227902

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