Oxidative stress in chronic cardiopathy associated with Chagas disease.
BACKGROUND
Chagas disease is characterized by chronic inflammation similar to autoimmune diseases. The imbalance between prooxidant and antioxidant defenses is known as oxidative stress, and is often associated with inflammatory processes of many diseases.


METHODS
The present work measured some components of the antioxidant system present in the blood of four groups of patients in different stages of chronic Chagas heart disease (n=10 each group), according to the modified Los Andes clinical-hemodynamic classification. Each group of chagasic patients was compared with four groups of healthy subjects, and chagasic group IV was compared to group V, characterized by rheumatic cardiac disease, giving a total of 90 subjects. Antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione S-transferase (GST), and the contents of reduced (GSH), oxidized (GSSG) and total glutathione (TG) were assayed.


RESULTS
SOD, CAT and GR activities showed essentially no differences among the four groups, however, intraerythrocytic GSH concentrations showed decreased values parallel to the progression of the disease. In addition, the glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities were higher in groups III and V and lower in groups I, II and IV, also suggesting an antioxidant depletion with progression of the disease. In contrast, except for SOD and CAT activities, patients from group V showed a generally higher antioxidant capacity compared to the chagasic group IV.


CONCLUSIONS
The results indicate a general increase of oxidative stress parallel to the progression of Chagas disease.
de Oliveira
Tiago Bittencourt
TB
Departamento de Ecologia e Zoologia, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Trindade, Florianópolis, 88040-900, Brazil.
Pedrosa
Roberto Coury
RC
Filho
Danilo Wilhelm
DW
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000032:analysis*; D002598:Chagas Cardiomyopathy / Q000097:blood* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D018384:Oxidative Stress
D000975:Antioxidants