Melatonin protects against cardiac damage induced by a combination of high fat diet and isoproterenol exacerbated oxidative stress in male Wistar rats

Abstract

In the current study, it was found that high fat diet (60% of total kCal) (H) or/and isoproterenol (I) exacerbated oxidative stress and caused myocardial damage. This was indicated by increased levels of LPO, PCO, abnormal mitochondria and altered activities of metabolic as well as antioxidant enzymes in myocardium of rats. Melatonin at different doses (10, 20 and 40 mg/kg) effectively protected against myocardial damage induced by H or/and I and preserved all of these altered parameters. Morphological analyses showed that combination of H and I treatment led to the extensive myofibril disintegration and neutrophil infiltration. Melatonin at the dose of 40 mg/kg almost completely prevented these pathological alterations. The mechanistical studies have uncovered that the protective effects of melatonin on the myocardial damage induced by H and I are attributed to its direct and indirect antioxidative capacity, i.e., it directly scavenges free radicals and also regulates the gene expression of antioxidant enzymes. Collectively, based on the evidences gathered from the current study, it will not be unwise to suggest that melatonin can serve as an ideal therapeutic agent for those cardiovascular diseases caused by oxidative stress.

Role of melatonin in the angiogenesis potential; highlights on the cardiovascular disease

“…This hormone with a chemical structure of N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine is produced from the amino acid tryptophan in the pituitary gland. First, tryptophan enters inside the active pineal cells, namely pinealocytes, and is converted into the hormone serotonin through a 5-hydroxyindole pathway [ 16 , 17 ] (Fig. 1 ).…”

Melatonin is a potential therapeutic molecule for oxidative stress induced red blood cell (RBC) injury : A review

“…The clinical trials have shown the protective effects of melatonin on cardiac arrhythmia (257), myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury (258,(259)(260)(261), its secondarily occurred liver and gastric tissue lesions (262,263) and cardiac apoptosis related to the metabolic disturbance (264). The oxidative cardiac damage induced by high fat diet in rat is also protected by melatonin (265).…”