Increased total scavenger capacity and decreased liver fat content in rats fed dehydroepiandrosterone and its sulphate on a high-fat diet.
BACKGROUND
Weak androgens have an antioxidant effect in vitro which is represented as a beneficial change in the antioxidant status.


OBJECTIVE
Our aim was to clarify whether dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) and dehydroepiandrosterone-sulphate (DHEAS) oral administration results in beneficial antioxidant changes in Sprague-Dawley adult male rats in vivo.


METHODS
Groups of experimental animals were fed a high-fat or a normal-fat diet and treated with DHEA or DHEAS in the drinking fluid. The control group was fed a high-fat diet together with untreated drinking fluid. Total scavenger capacity (TSC) was measured before and after 4 weeks of treatment in blood samples using a chemiluminometric assay. Fat content, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase and glutathione S-transferase (GST) activity in the liver were determined by Sudan staining and spectrophotometric assessments, respectively, from the fresh frozen tissue.


RESULTS
DHEA and the DHEAS treatment showed significantly increased TSC in the groups fed a high-fat diet. The control group and the DHEA- or DHEAS-treated groups on normal diets showed no significant changes in TSC. The total score of liver fat content in the high-fat diet groups showed a marked positivity with Sudan staining, and the groups treated with DHEA or DHEAS had a markedly decreased amount of fat in the liver slides compared to the untreated group on the high-fat diet. Liver SOD activity was decreased in all high-fat diet groups and elevated only in the groups on a normal diet with DHEA or DHEAS treatment. Liver catalase and GST activities were decreased in the groups where TSC was significantly increased.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results support the hypothesis that DHEA and DHEAS supplementation can improve the antioxidant status in lipid-rich dietary habits.
Magyar
Zoltan
Z
1st Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.
Bekesi
Gabor
G
Racz
Karoly
K
Feher
Janos
J
Schaff
Zsuzsa
Z
Lengyel
Gabriella
G
Blazovics
Anna
A
Illyes
Gyorgy
G
Szombath
Dezso
D
Hrabak
Andras
A
Szekacs
Bela
B
Gergics
Peter
P
Marczell
Istvan
I
Dinya
Elek
E
Rigo
Janos
J
Tulassay
Zsolt
Z
D000284:Administration, Oral; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D002374:Catalase / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate / Q000494:pharmacology; D004041:Dietary Fats / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005234:Fatty Liver / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D005982:Glutathione Transferase / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012016:Reference Values; D013053:Spectrophotometry; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*
D000975:Antioxidants; D004041:Dietary Fats; D003687:Dehydroepiandrosterone; D019314:Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate; D002374:Catalase; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase; D005982:Glutathione Transferase