Bardas, Ebru; Arslan, Yusuf Kemal; Polat, Seher; Erisir, Mine; Uslu, Gözde Atila; Cetin, Nihal; Cicek, Betul

Aim of this work was to determine the effects of dietary intake vitamin E and Se on lipid peroxidation (LPO) as Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and on the antioxidative defense mechanisms in heart tissues of rats treated with high doses of prednisolone. 250 adult male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 5 groups and fed with normal diet. Additionally groups 3, 4, and 5 received a daily supplement in their drinking water of 20 mg vitamin E, 0.3 mg Se, and a combination of vitamin E and Se (20 mg/0.3 mg), respectively, for 30 days. For 3 d subsequently, control group was treated with placebo, and remaining four groups were injected intramuscularly with 100 mg/kg prednisolone. After last administration of prednisolone, 10 rats from each group were killed at 4, 8, 12, 24, and 48 h and the activities of antioxidant enzymes and the levels of GSH and TBARS were measured. GSH-Px, CAT activities and GSH levels decreased starting from 4th hour to 48% and 65% of control levels by 24th hour, respectively and it reincreased to control levels at 48th hour in the prednisolone group (p < 0.001, p < 0.001). In addition, prednisolone administration led 2-fold increase in heart TBARS levels at 24th hour (p < 0.001). E vitamins and Se inhibited the increase in heart TBARS and the decrease in antioxidative enzymes levels. Therefore, It is concluded that vitamin E and Se may have a preventive role in decreasing the increase of TBARS caused by prednisolone administration in our study.

Cinici, Emine; Mammadov, Renad; Findik, Huseyin; Suleyman, Bahadir; Cetin, Nihal; Calik, Ilknur; Balta, Hilal; Tas, Ismail Hakki; Sener, Ebru; Altuner, Durdu

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of thiamine pyrophosphate (TPP), administered via sugar water, on retinal neovascularisation in rats. Animals were assigned to three groups, namely the TPP sugar-water group (TPSWG, n = 12), the control group (CG, n = 12) and the healthy group (HG, n = 12). The TPSWG was injected intraperitoneally with TPP once a day for 6 months. CG and HG rats were given distilled water in the same way. TPSWG and CG rats were left free to access an additional 0.292 mmol /ml of sugar water for 6 months. The fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels of the animals were measured monthly. After 6 months, biochemical, gene expression and histopathologic analyses were carried out in the retinal tissues removed from the animals after they were killed. The measured FBG levels were 6.96 ± 0.09 mmol/ml (p < 0.0001 vs. HG), 6.95 ± 0.06 mmol/ml (p < 0.0001 vs. HG) and 3.94 ± 0.10 mmol/ml in the CG, TPSWG and HG groups, respectively. The malondialdehyde (MDA) levels were found to be 2.82 ± 0.23 (p < 0.0001 vs. HG), 1.40 ± 0.32 (p < 0.0001 vs. HG) and 1.66 ± 0.17 in the CG, TPSWG and HG, respectively. Interleukin 1 beta (IL-1β) gene expression was increased (3.78 ± 0.29, p < 0.0001) and total glutathione (tGSH) was decreased (1.32 ± 0.25, p < 0.0001) in the retinal tissue of CG compared with TPSWG (1.92 ± 0.29 and 3.18 ± 0.46, respectively). Increased vascularisation and oedema were observed in the retinal tissue of CG, while the retinal tissues of TPSWG and HG rats had a normal histopathological appearance. A carbohydrate-rich diet may lead to pathological changes in the retina even in nondiabetics, but this may be overcome by TPP administration.

Eskici, Günay

Soccer is one of the most widely played and complex sports in the world, where success depends on technical, tactical and physical skills of the players. Studies to improve performance in soccer have often focused on technique and tactics. However, nutrition is one of the most important factors infl uencing athletic performance of the players. The duration of matches is long and the training is intense. This leads to increased requirements for energy and nutrients, as well as increased reactive oxygen radicals and hence increased muscle damage. Vitamins are micronutrients that a living organism requires in trace quantities for health. As these assume crucial functions in the body, the performance of the player is negatively affected particularly during long-term defi ciency. Beta-carotene, C and E vitamins are antioxidants that protect against oxygen radicals. In case of their defi ciency, oxidative stress and muscle fatigue increases. Vitamin D is involved in maintaining mineral balance, and it increases absorption of dietary calcium and phosphorus. In case of vitamin D defi ciency, injuries resulting from the musculoskeletal system might increase. B Vitamins (B1, B2, niacin, B6, B12, biotin, folic acid and pantothenic acid) perform duties such as energy production, absorption and transport of iron and blood cell production. Athletes who follow an energy-restricted and imbalanced diet might develop vitamin defi ciency. In such a case, supplements can be used as recommended by the doctor/dietician. It is further reported that supplement use by athletes who have an adequate and balanced nutrition does not increase performance.

Sisecioglu, Melda; Cankaya, Murat; Ozdemir, Hasan

Objective: The present paper investigates the in vitro effect of L-ascorbic acid (vitamin C), menadione sodium bisulfate (vitamin K3), and folic acid on purified lactoperoxidase (LPO). Methods: This enzyme was purified from bovine milk by AmberliteCG50 resin,CMSephadex C-50 ion-exchange chromatography, and Sephadex G-100 gel filtration chromatography. Results: Rz (A412/A280) value for the purified LPO was found to be 0.8. Lactoperoxidase was purified 20.45-fold with a yield of 28.8%. Purity of enzyme was checked by sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDSPAGE) method and a single band was observed. All tested vitamins caused inhibition of the enzyme activity and displayed a competitive type of inhibition mechanism. IC50 values of these three vitamins were 2.03 μM, 0.025 mM, and 0.0925 mM, and the K i constants were 0.508±0.257 μM, 0.0107±0.0044 mM, and 0.0218±0.0019 mM respectively. Conclusion: The vitamins discussed here displayed inhibition-type competition with LPO enzyme at varying concentrations. Our study showed that L-ascorbic acid exhibited a much higher inhibitory effect at lower concentrations, so it was evidently a more potent inhibitor than other vitamins tested.