title: Effects of garlic oil and two of its major organosulfur compounds, diallyl disulfide and diallyl trisulfide, on intestinal damage in rats injected with endotoxin.
abstract: Garlic and its active components are known to possess antioxidant and antiinflammatory effects. The present study investigated the effects of garlic oil and its organosulfur compounds on endotoxin-induced intestinal mucosal damage. Wistar rats received by gavage 50 or 200 mg/kg body weight garlic oil (GO), 0.5 mmol/kg body weight diallyl disulfide or diallyl trisulfide, or the vehicle (corn oil; 2 ml/kg body weight) every other day for 2 weeks before being injected with endotoxin (i.p., 5 mg/kg body weight). Control rats were administered with corn oil and were injected with sterile saline. Samples for the measurement of proinflammatory cytokines were collected 3 h after injection, and all other samples were collected 18 h after injection. The low dose of GO suppressed endotoxin-induced inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) activity, ulceration, and apoptosis in the intestinal mucosa (P < 0.05). The high dose of GO significantly lowered the peripheral level of nitrate/nitrite and endotoxin-induced iNOS activity in the intestinal mucosa (P < 0.05) but worsened intestinal mucosal damage accompanied by elevated peripheral proinflammatory cytokines. Diallyl trisulfide but not diallyl disulfide showed similar toxic effect as that of high-dose GO. These results suggest the preventive effect and possible toxicity of garlic oil and its organosulfur compounds in endotoxin-induced systemic inflammation and intestinal damage.
authors.affiliation: Department of Nutrition, Chung Shan Medical University, No. 110, Sec. 1, Chien Kuo N. Road Taichung, Taiwan 402, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Yi-Hsuan
authors.initials: YH
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.forename: Lin-Ni
authors.initials: LN
authors.lastname: Jen
authors.forename: Hsiau-Yuan
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Su
authors.forename: Chong-Kuei
authors.initials: CK
authors.lastname: Lii
authors.forename: Lee-Yan
authors.initials: LY
authors.lastname: Sheen
authors.forename: Cheng-Tzu
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Liu
mesh_terms: D000498:Allyl Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000097:blood; D004220:Disulfides / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004731:Endotoxins / Q000633:toxicity*; D005737:Garlic; D007413:Intestinal Mucosa / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D010938:Plant Oils / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013440:Sulfides / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000498:Allyl Compounds; D000975:Antioxidants; D016207:Cytokines; D004220:Disulfides; D004731:Endotoxins; D010938:Plant Oils; D013440:Sulfides; C042577:diallyl trisulfide; C028009:diallyl disulfide; C038491:allyl sulfide