Daily consumption of opium and alcohol can make people have many health problems, including coronary artery disease diseases (CAD) which has been found to be the most common cause death in opium addicts. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of simultaneous consumption of alcohol and opium on the lipid profile and oxidative stress in Syrian golden hamsters. Twenty-four male golden Syrian hamsters were randomly divided into four treatment groups (n=6): 1-control (received normal chow), 2-opium (received 40 mg/kg of opium two times per day), 3-alcohol (received 6.0 g/kg of 30% ethanol two times per day), 4-combination group (received a combination of the above mentioned doses of opium and ethanol). After one month of treatment, hamsters were sacrificed and blood samples were collected. Lipid levels and atherogenic index were markedly increased in the combination group compared with the controls (p < 0.001). Serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) (p < 0.05), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) (p < 0.05), and gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT) (p < 0.01), were significantly increased in alcohol-treated group compared with the control animals. The increase in ALT (p < 0.01) and GGT (p < 0.001) levels were more significant in the combination group when compared with the controls. The plasma concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) was markedly increased in the ethanol (p < 0.01), opium (p < 0.01) and combination groups (p < 0.001) compared with the controls. Glutathione (GSH), nitric oxide (NO) and catalase (CAT) levels as well as superoxide dismutase activity were markedly reduced in the ethanol (p < 0.05), opium (p < 0.05), and combination groups (p < 0.001) compared with the control group. Results of this study clearly showed that opium and ethanol are capable to provoke the oxidative stress when administered alone or in combination. Moreover, combination opium and alcohol increased total cholesterol, LDL-C, TG, VLDL-C, atherogenic index and non-HDL-C levels.
Many people believe that opium has beneficial effects on lipid profile which results in reduced atherosclerosis. Opium contains several alkaloids and biological active components, which some of them are used for atherosclerosis treatment. The liver X receptor α (LXRα) is an important regulator of cholesterol and glucose homeostasis that belongs to the nuclear receptor superfamily. This study aimed to investigate the effects of opium on glucose, lipid profile and LXRα expression. Sixteen N-mary mice randomly were divided into two groups (control and addict), and were studied for one month. Serum lipid profile, Fasting blood sugar (FBS), Aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and Alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were determined. Also LXR mRNA and protein levels were determined by Reverse Transcription PCR and western blotting. This study showed that opium significantly reduced total cholesterol (P < 0.05), While the difference in blood glucose, triglyceride (TG), High-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c), Low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(LDL-c) and Very low-density lipoprotein cholesterol(VLDL-c), as well as AST and ALT between addict and control groups were not significant. More importantly, LXR protein and mRNA levels significantly increased (P < 0.05) in intestine of addict group in comparison with control, while the change in LXR protein and mRNA in the liver were not significant compared with control. The results of this study showed that opium addiction reduced total cholesterol and increased LXR expression in intestine. Further researches need to determine effective components.
Diabetes Mellitus has appeared as a universal burden. Studies have reported that mortality from Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) in diabetic patients is 2 -4 times higher than nondiabetics. In this respect, walnut is a treatment which has beneficial effects on CHD risk factors. PPARα and SREBP-1c play an important role in the regulation of lipid metabolism. This study was aimed to evaluate the effects of walnut on lipid profile as well as SREBP-1c and PPARα protein levels in rats. Animals were randomly divided into 3 groups (n = 6); Group 1: Received chow only (control), Group 2: Diabetic rats + chow, Group 3: Diabetic rats + chow supplemented with 4% of whole walnuts. After four weeks rats were sacrificed, blood was collected; lipid profiles as well as SREBP-1c and PPARα protein levels were determined. Compared with diabetic rats walnut significantly decreased serum cholesterol (P < 0.01), LDL-c (P < 0.01), triglyceride (P < 0.001) and VLDL-c (P < 0.001) and also increased HDL-c (P < 0.05) compared with diabetic. Moreover, SREBP-1c protein level significantly decreased (P < 0.05) and PPARα significantly increased in walnut group compared with diabetic group (P < 0.05). The findings showed that walnut administration in diet clinically decreases atherosclerosis risk factors. Lipid profile reduction might be due to the rise of PPARα and the reduction of SREBP-1c by this medical treatment in liver.
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