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Antioxidant Effect of Cysteamine in Brain Cortex of Young Rats

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Abstract

Cysteamine is a cystine-depleting drug used in the treatment of cystinosis, a metabolic disorder caused by deficiency of the lysosomal cystine carrier. As a result, cystine accumulates within lysosomes in many tissues and organs, including the nervous system. Studies with cystine dimethyl ester loaded cells suggest that cystine might induce apoptosis through oxidative stress. Our objective was to investigate the effects of co-administration of cysteamine with the oxidant cystine dimethyl ester on several parameters of oxidative stress in the brain cortex of rats. Animals were injected with 1.6 μmol/g cystine dimethyl ester and/or 0.26 μmol/g body weight cysteamine. Cystine dimethyl ester induced lipoperoxidation, protein carbonylation, and stimulated superoxide dismutase, glutathione peroxidase and catalase activities, probably through the formation of free radicals. Cysteamine prevented those effects, possibly increasing cellular thiol pool and acting as a scavenger of free radicals. These results suggest that the antioxidant effect of cysteamine may be important in the treatment of cystinosis.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported in part by grants from Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq-Brazil), Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Rio Grande do Sul (FAPERGS, RS-Brazil), Programa de Núcleos de Excelência (PRONEX-CNPq /FAPERGS -Brazil) and Rede Instituto Brasileiro de Neurociência (IBN-Net), FINEP #01.06.0842-00.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Bioquímica, Instituto de Ciências Básicas da Saúde, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Rua Ramiro Barcelos 2600, Porto Alegre, RS, CEP 90.035-003, Brazil

    Adriana Kessler, Micheli Biasibetti, Moacir Wajner, Carlos Severo Dutra-Filho, Ângela Terezinha de Souza Wyse & Clovis Milton Duval Wannmacher

  2. Faculdade de Enfermagem, Nutrição e Fisioterapia, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, RS, Brazil

    Adriana Kessler & Denizar Alberto da Silva Melo

  3. Curso de Fisioterapia, Instituto de Ciências da Saúde, Centro Universitário Feevale, Novo Hamburgo, RS, Brazil

    Adriana Kessler

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  1. Adriana Kessler
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Correspondence to Clovis Milton Duval Wannmacher.

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Kessler, A., Biasibetti, M., da Silva Melo, D.A. et al. Antioxidant Effect of Cysteamine in Brain Cortex of Young Rats. Neurochem Res 33, 737–744 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11064-007-9486-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11064-007-9486-7

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