title: Rapamycin alleviates oxidative stress-induced damage in rat erythrocytes.
abstract: An imbalanced cellular redox system promotes the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that may lead to oxidative stress-mediated cell death. Erythrocytes are the best-studied model of antioxidant defense mechanism. The present study was undertaken to investigate the effect of the immunosuppressant drug rapamycin, an inducer of autophagy, on redox balance of erythrocytes and blood plasma of oxidatively challenged rats. Male Wistar rats were oxidatively challenged with HgCl2(5 mg/kg body mass (b.m.)). A significant (p < 0.05) induction in ROS production, plasma membrane redox system (PMRS), intracellular Ca2+influx, lipid peroxidation (LPO), osmotic fragility, plasma protein carbonyl (PCO) content, and plasma advanced oxidation protein products (AOPP) and simultaneously significant reduction in glutathione (GSH) level and ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP) were observed in rats exposed to HgCl2. Furthermore, rapamycin (0.5 mg/kg b.m.) provided significant protection against HgCl2-induced alterations in rat erythrocytes and plasma by reducing ROS production, PMRS activity, intracellular Ca2+influx, LPO, osmotic fragility, PCO content, and AOPP and also restored the level of antioxidant GSH and FRAP. Our observations provide evidence that rapamycin improves redox status and attenuates oxidative stress in oxidatively challenged rats. Our data also demonstrate that rapamycin is a comparatively safe immunosuppressant drug.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.|Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.
authors.forename: Abhishek Kumar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.|Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.
authors.forename: Sandeep
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Singh
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.|Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.
authors.forename: Geetika
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Garg
authors.affiliation: Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.|Department of Biochemistry, University of Allahabad, Allahabad-211002, India.
authors.forename: Syed Ibrahim
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Rizvi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D005978:Glutathione / Q000378:metabolism; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000494:pharmacology*; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation / Q000187:drug effects; D008297:Male; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D020123:Sirolimus / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D005978:Glutathione; D002118:Calcium; D020123:Sirolimus
keywords: erythrocyte; espèces réactives d’oxygène; membrane plasmique; oxidative stress; plasma protein; rapamycin; rapamycine; reactive oxygen species; stress oxydant; érythrocyte