Olive leaf extract decreases age-induced oxidative stress in major organs of aged rats.
OBJECTIVE
Olive leaf (Olea europaea L.) extract (OLE) is a powerful anti-oxidant rich in polyphenols. As oxidative stress plays an important role in aging, we investigated the effect of OLE on oxidative stress in the liver, heart and brain of aged rats.


METHODS
Young (age 3 months) and aged (age 20 months) Wistar rats were used. Aged rats received OLE (500 and 1000 mg/kg/day) in drinking water for 2 months. Malondialdehyde (MDA), diene conjugate (DC), protein carbonyl (PC), glutathione (GSH), vitamin E and vitamin C levels, and superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and glutathione transferase (GST) activities were determined.


RESULTS
MDA, DC and PC levels increased in tissues of aged rats. GSH levels decreased in the liver, but not in the heart and brain. There was no change of other anti-oxidant parameters in tissues. Hepatic SOD and GSH-Px protein expressions also remained unchanged. OLE treatment caused decreased tissue MDA, DC and PC levels, and increased hepatic GSH levels in aged rats. Other anti-oxidant parameters, hepatic SOD and GSH-Px protein expressions did not alter in aged rats by OLE treatment.


CONCLUSIONS
The present results suggest that OLE seems to be useful for decreasing oxidative stress in examined tissues by acting as an anti-oxidant itself without affecting the anti-oxidant system.
Department of Biochemistry, Yeditepe University Medical Faculty, Istanbul, Turkey.
Jale
J
Çoban
Serdar
S
Öztezcan
Semra
S
Doğru-Abbasoğlu
Ilknur
I
Bingül
Kübra
K
Yeşil-Mizrak
Müjdat
M
Uysal
D000375:Aging / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation / Q000187:drug effects; D008099:Liver / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism*; D031658:Olea; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects*; D008517:Phytotherapy / Q000379:methods*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000494:pharmacology*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013053:Spectrophotometry
D000975:Antioxidants; D010936:Plant Extracts
aging; olive leaf extract; oxidative stress; rats; tissues