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(Journal of Nutrition. 2000;130:1303-1308.)
© 2000 The American Society for Nutritional Sciences


Article

Canthaxanthin Supplementation Alters Antioxidant Enzymes and Iron Concentration in Liver of Balb/c Mice1

Paola Palozza, Gabriella Calviello, Maria Emilia De Leo, Simona Serini and Gianna Maria Bartoli*2

Institute of General Pathology, Catholic University, 00168 Rome, Italy * Department of Biology, Tor Vergata University, 00133 Rome, Italy

2To whom correspondence should be addressed.


    ABSTRACT
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 REFERENCES
 
The 4,4'-diketo-ß-carotene, canthaxanthin, alters tocopherol status when fed to Balb/c mice, suggesting an involvement of carotenoids in the modulation of oxidative stress in vivo. We investigated further the modifications induced by an oral administration of canthaxanthin on lipid peroxidation, antioxidant enzymes and iron status in liver of Balb/c mice. Female 6-wk-old Balb/c mice were randomly divided into two groups (n = 10/group). The control group (C) received olive oil alone (vehicle) and the canthaxanthin-treated group (Cx) received canthaxanthin at a dose of 14 µg/(g body wt·d). The 15-d canthaxanthin treatment resulted in carotenoid incorporation but did not modify lipid peroxidation as measured by endogenous production of malondialdehyde (MDA). However, glutathione peroxidase activity was 35% lower (P < 0.01) and catalase (59%, P < 0.005) and manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) (28%, P < 0.05) activities were higher in canthaxanthin-treated mice than in controls. Moreover, carotenoid feeding caused a significant (P < 0.05) overexpression of the MnSOD gene; mRNA levels of the enzyme were greater in treated mice than in controls. Concomitantly, a 27% (P < 0.05) greater iron concentration was found in liver from canthaxanthin-treated mice compared with controls. These findings support the hypothesis that canthaxanthin alters the protective ability of tissues against oxidative stressin vivo.


KEY WORDS: • canthaxanthin • carotenoids • antioxidant enzymes • iron status • mice


    INTRODUCTION
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 REFERENCES
 
There is a growing body of literature on the effects of ß-carotene and other carotenoids in human chronic diseases, including cancer (Mayne 1996Citation ). Numerous epidemiologic studies have shown that a high consumption of fruit and vegetables, the main dietary sources of carotenoids, is associated with a low risk for cancer (Van Poppel and Goldbohm 1995Citation ). Although some intervention trials have indicated that supplemental ß-carotene is of little or no value in preventing cancer incidence (Hennekens et al. 1996Citation ) or mortality (Greenberg et al. 1996Citation ) and may actually increase lung cancer in smokers (Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta Carotene Cancer Prevention Study Group 1994Citation , Omenn et al. 1996Citation ), several other studies have shown that carotenoids, alone or in combination with other nutrients, may function as potent chemopreventive agents in humans (Blot et al. 1995Citation ) and animals (Gerster 1995Citation , Krinsky 1989Citation ). One of the mechanism(s) by which carotenoids function as antitumor agents is their ability to modulate cell redox status. Carotenoids may act as antioxidant (Krinsky 1993Citation , Palozza and Krinsky 1992Citation , Sies and Stahl 1995Citation ) or prooxidant (Palozza 1998Citation , Schwartz 1996Citation ) agents in vitro. However, it is still unclear whether such a modulation occurs in vivo and whether it is due to intrinsic properties of carotenoid molecules per se or to carotenoid-induced changes in cell antioxidant defenses. The hypothesis of a modulation of antioxidants by carotenoids is supported by experiments in vitro. ß-Carotene treatment significantly decreased the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD)3 and glutathione S-transferase in human oral carcinoma cells (Schwartz et al. 1992Citation ). Moreover, carotenoids induce dose-dependent changes in the activities of antioxidant enzymes in chicken embryo fibroblasts (Lawlor and O’Brien 1995Citation and 1997Citation ). Finally, a loss of endogenous {alpha}-tocopherol was observed in murine thymoma cells after ß-carotene treatment (Palozza et al. 1997bCitation ).

Although oral carotenoid supplementation can reduce or increase plasma and tissue levels of tocopherols in animals (Bendich and Shapiro 1986Citation , Blakely et al. 1991Citation , Lambert et al. 1994Citation , Mayne and Parker 1989Citation , Tang et al. 1995Citation , Woodall et al. 1996Citation , Xu et al. 1992Citation ) and humans (Mobarhan et al. 1994Citation , Xu et al. 1992Citation ), few studies exist on the effect of carotenoids on cell antioxidant status in vivo.

Mice fed carotenoid-fortified supplements accumulate them in serum and tissues, although this accumulation is not as efficient as that in humans (van Vliet 1996Citation ). We previously reported that Balb/c mice incorporated canthaxanthin into liver within 15 d (Palozza et al. 1997aCitation ). We also found that supplementation with this carotenoid had an antitumor effect (Palozza et al. 1997aCitation ) and altered tocopherol status (Palozza et al. 1998Citation ) in Balb/c mice. These effects were more pronounced in female than in male mice. In view of the hypothesis that carotenoids may modify the course of chronic diseases by affecting the protective ability of cells against oxidative stress, we investigated whether a 15-d canthaxanthin treatment alters lipid peroxidation and/or changes antioxidant enzymes in liver of Balb/c mice.


    MATERIALS AND METHODS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 REFERENCES
 
Materials.

Canthaxanthin (kindly provided by Hoffmann La Roche, Basel, Switzerland) was administrated to the mice as stock solutions in olive oil (3.0 g/L in the oil) as indicated (Palozza et al. 1997aCitation ). Canthaxanthin solution was prepared every day. The level of all-trans-canthaxanthin in the total material was 97% and its purity was verified as indicated (Palozza et al. 1998Citation ). Ammonium acetate and BHT were obtained from Sigma Chemical (St. Louis, MO); tetrahydrofuran (99%) was purchased from Aldrich Chemical (St. Louis, MO) and always used under a nitrogen atmosphere; hexane, methanol, acetonitrile and ethanol were obtained from Fluka Chemika-Biochemika (Buchs, Switzerland). All of the solvents used were HPLC grade.

Animals.

Female Balb/c mice (Catholic University laboratories, Rome, Italy), aged 6 wk, with a mean body weight of 22.5 ± 1.0 g, were allocated to cages housing 5 mice per cage in a room with a 12-h day:night cycle, at a temperature of 25°C and at a constant humidity. Throughout the experiment, mice were fed a nonpurified commercial diet (Altromin-Rieper diet, Rieper, Bz, Italy).4 The mice had free access to water. Mice were examined and weighed at the start of the experiment and twice a week during the study period. All animal procedures were reviewed and approved by the Ministry of Health, Veterinary Service, Rome, Italy.

Experimental design.

The mice were assigned to one of two groups of 10. The control group (C) received olive oil alone (vehicle) for 15 d; the canthaxanthin-treated group (Cx) received canthaxanthin at a dose of 14 µg/(g body wt·d) for the same period of time. Canthaxanthin and olive oil were administered daily by gavage. Fourteen µg/(g body wt·d) corresponds to a carotenoid dose of ~68 mg/d for a 60 kg-man by the following formula: (dose in mg/m2) = Km·(dose in mg/kg), where Km is the appropriate factor for converting doses from mg/kg to mg/m2 surface area for each species (Km = 3 for mice and 37 for humans) (Freireich et al. 1966Citation ). Therefore, the dose of carotenoid administered in this study was similar to that given in several human studies (Delmas-Beauvieux et al. 1996Citation , Johnson et al. 1997Citation , Xu et al. 1992Citation ), in which the amount of carotenoid supplemented reached 60 mg/d. In addition, this dose represented the maximum dose of the carotenoid that can be dissolved in an amount of olive oil tolerated by the mice.

At the end of the treatment, mice were killed by cervical dislocation and liver was excised, frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80°C.

Canthaxanthin assay.

Canthaxanthin was extracted from liver samples (0.16–0.20 g) and analyzed by HPLC according to Palozza et al. (1997a)Citation . Chromatography was carried out with a LC-18-DB Supelcosil column, 15 cm x 0.46 cm, 3-µm particle size (Supelco, Bellefonte, PA). A C18-DB Supelcosil precolumn, 2 cm x 0.46 cm, 5-µm packing, was used. The mobile phase was 85% acetonitrile/15% methanol, containing 0.1 g/L ammonium acetate. The flow rate was 1 mL/min and the detection was 460 nm. Canthaxanthin concentration in samples was calculated as all-trans-canthaxanthin from a calibration curve generated from a peak height of canthaxanthin in calibration samples.

Malondialdehyde (MDA) assay.

MDA was extracted and analyzed as indicated (Tatum et al. 1990Citation ). The isobutanol extract was mixed with methanol (2:1) before injecting into the HPLC. The column was packed with Supelcosil LC-18 material, 3-µm particle size, in a 15 cm x 4.6 mm cartridge format (Supelco). A 2-cm cartridge precolumn containing 5 µm LC-18 Supelcosil packing was used. The mobile phase was a 1:1 (v/v) mixture of methanol and double-distilled water, containing tetrabutyl ammonium dihydrogen phosphate (0.5 g/L). The thiobarbituric acid (TBA)-MDA adduct was detected by a fluorimeter set at an excitation wavelength of 515 nm and an emission wavelength of 550 nm. At a flow rate of 1 mL/min, the retention time of the TBA-MDA adduct was 5 min. MDA concentration was calculated from a calibration curve generated from a peak height of the MDA standard, prepared by acid hydrolysis of 1,1,3,3-tetramethoxypropane (Tatum et al. 1990Citation ).

Assay of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px).

Liver samples (0.20 g) were homogenized in 0.25 mol/L sucrose and centrifuged at 100,000 x g for 60 min. The reaction mixture (1 mL) containing 0.05 mol/L potassium phosphate (pH 7.0), 0.001 mol/L sodium azide, 0.002 mol/L GSH, 0.0002 mol/L NADPH, 0.001 mol/L EDTA, 1 kU/L glutathione reductase and 20–100 µL of sample (0.5–1 g/L protein) was incubated at 25°C for 5 min. Addition of 0.01 mol/L t-butylhydroperoxide started the reaction, which was followed spectrophotometrically at 340 nm (25°C) for 3 min (Wendel 1981Citation ).

Glutathione assay.

Total and oxidized GSH were extracted and analyzed by HPLC as indicated (Neuschwander-Tetri and Roll 1989Citation ). Chromatography was carried out with a LC-18 Supelcosil column, 25 cm x 0.46 cm, 5-µm particle size (Supelco). A C18 Supelcosil precolumn, 2 cm x 0.46 cm, 5-µm packing, was used. The mobile phase was 7.5% methanol/92.5% acetate buffer (0.15 mol/L, pH 7.00). The flow rate was 1.5 mL/min. Peaks were detected by fluorescence measurement at 420 nm after excitation at 340 nm. GSH and GSSG concentrations in samples were derived by comparing the derivative peak area to a standard curve generated by derivatizing known amounts of GSH.

Assay of catalase activity.

Liver samples (0.20 g) were homogenized in isotonic buffer and centrifuged at 700 x g for 5–10 min. Ethanol (0.01 mL EtOH/mL) was added to an aliquot of the supernatant; samples were incubated for 30 min in an ice-water bath and Triton X-100 was then added to a final concentration of 10 g/L. The enzyme activity was measured spectrophotometrically, measuring the ultraviolet absorption of H2O2 at 240 nm (Beers and Sizer 1952Citation ).

Assay of CuZnSOD and MnSOD activities.

Liver samples (0.15 g) were excised and homogenized on ice in 0.05 mol/L potassium phosphate, 0.0001 mol/L EDTA, pH 7.4, for 2 min at full speed with a Polytron homogenizer. Total SOD activity was assayed on 48 h-dialyzed homogenate by the method of inhibition of hematoxylin autoxidation to hematin (Martin et al. 1987Citation ), monitored at 560 nm (pH 7.5, 25°C) using a standard curve obtained by purified bovine blood enzyme. MnSOD was measured in the presence of 0.003 mol/L Na cyanide. CuZnSOD resulted from the difference between total and MnSOD.

Northern blot analysis.

Because it has been reported that MnSOD is an inducible enzyme and that oxidative stress is one of the major factors regulating its gene expression (Borrello et al. 1992Citation ), we evaluated the mRNA of MnSOD in liver of mice fed olive oil (control) or canthaxanthin for 15 d. Total RNA was isolated according to the method of Chirgwin et al. (1979)Citation . RNA concentrations were determined spectrophotometrically by absorbance at 260 nm. Samples of denatured RNA (12 µg) were size-fractionated by formaldehyde-agarose (15 g/L) gel electrophoresis and capillary transferred to nylon membranes. Hybridization was performed at 42°C with rat MnSOD cDNA radiolabeled by the Multiprime DNA labeling system (Amersham). Autoradiograms were obtained at -70°C using Kodak XAR films (Sigma Chemical, St. Louis, MO).

Hepatic Fe, Cu and Mn concentrations.

Evidence suggests that iron (De Leo et al. 1997Citation ), copper and manganese (Borrello et al. 1992Citation ) are implicated in pre- and post-transcriptional regulation of SOD; catalytic metal ions (Halliwell and Gutteridge 1990Citation ) are reported to play a role in oxidative processes through Fenton reactions. For this purpose, we measured the levels of these ions in murine liver after a 15-d treatment with olive oil (control) or canthaxanthin. Metal concentrations were determined by atomic absorption using a Perkin Elmer 272 Spectrophotometer (Norwalk, CT) utilizing thin slices of fresh tissues (0.50 g), dried overnight at 100°C and digested with nitric acid (Calviello et al. 1994Citation ).

Statistical analysis.

Unpaired t tests were used to determine differences between the two groups. Differences, analyzed using Minitab Software (Minitab, State College, PA), were considered significant at P < 0.05. Values are means ± SEM.


    RESULTS
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 REFERENCES
 
No significant differences were observed in food intake, body weight or liver weights between the two groups during the 15 d of treatment (data not shown). Moreover, no evidence of illness indicating toxicity was observed in canthaxanthin-treated mice (data not shown).

In agreement with previous results (Palozza et al. 1997aCitation ), canthaxanthin treatment for 15 d at the dose of 14 µg/(g body wt·d) resulted in hepatic incorporation of the carotenoid, which was maximum in liver (data not shown) and reached 0.52 ± 0.05 nmol/g liver. On the other hand, no traces of canthaxanthin were found in liver from the control group. Nevertheless, the presence of canthaxanthin had no discernible effect on lipid peroxidation, measured as endogenous production of MDA. After 15 d of canthaxanthin supplementation, liver MDA concentration was 29.8 ± 0.5 and 28.7 ± 0.6 nmol/g in control and canthaxanthin-treated mice, respectively.

Canthaxanthin treatment significantly (P < 0.01) reduced GSH-Px activity by 35% (Fig. 1Citation , upper panel). In contrast, the carotenoid treatment did not significantly modify the hepatic GSH and GSSG concentrations. Hepatic GSH was 3.88 ± 0.40 and 3.50 ± 0.40 µmol/g wet tissue in control and canthaxanthin-treated mice, respectively. Hepatic GSSG was 0.50 ± 0.06 and 0.38 ± 0.04 µmol/g wet liver in control and canthaxanthin-treated mice, respectively. In contrast, canthaxanthin treatment significantly (P < 0.005) enhanced catalase by 59% (Fig. 1Citation , middle panel). Although canthaxanthin supplementation did not significantly modify CuZnSOD activity, it significantly (P < 0.05) increased MnSOD activity by 28% relative to controls (Fig. 1Citation , lower panel).



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Figure 1. Glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) (upper panel), catalase (middle panel) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) (lower panel) activities in liver from control (C) and canthaxanthin-treated (Cx) mice. Values are means ± SEM, n = 10. *Different from control, P < 0.05.

 
Figure 2ACitation shows the Northern blot analysis of MnSOD mRNA and Figure 2BCitation shows the respective densitometric analysis of autoradiographic bands. MnSOD mRNA levels were greater (P < 0.05) in canthaxanthin-treated mice than in controls.



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Figure 2. Expression of the manganese superoxide dismutase (MnSOD) gene in liver from control (C) and canthaxanthin-treated (Cx) mice. (Panel A) Top: Northern blot hybridization of MnSOD cDNA probe with 12 µg of total RNA isolated from liver of C and Cx mice. The MnSOD band was estimated to be ~0.85 kb. The blot was representative of four independent analyses. Bottom: ethidium bromide staining of the same gel revealed equivalent amounts of ribosomal RNA (28 S and 18 S). Autoradiograms were developed after 24 h of exposure. (Panel B) Densitometric analysis of autoradiographic bands obtained by Northern blots of MnSOD RNA from liver of C and Cx-treated mice, normalized to 100% for control liver. Values are means ± SEM, n = 4. *Different from control, P < 0.05.

 
The carotenoid-supplemented mice had 27% (P < 0.05) more iron in liver than control mice (Fig. 3Citation ), but copper and manganese concentrations did not differ. Copper concentrations were 0.12 ± 0.01 nmol/mg dry liver in control group and 0.13 ± 0.01 nmol/mg dry liver in the canthaxanthin-treated group. Manganese concentrations were 0.07 ± 0.01 and 0.06 ± 0.01 nmol/mg dry liver in the control and canthaxanthin groups, respectively.



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Figure 3. Hepatic iron (Fe) concentration in control (C) and canthaxanthin-treated (Cx) mice. Values are means ± SEM, n = 10. *Different from control, P < 0.05.

 

    DISCUSSION
 TOP
 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 REFERENCES
 
Canthaxanthin can substantially modify the antioxidant status of murine liver tissue in vivo, altering not only the content of lipophylic antioxidants, such as tocopherols (Palozza et al. 1998Citation ), but also the activity of enzymatic antioxidants. The carotenoid reduced the activity of GSH-Px and increased those of catalase and MnSOD. Moreover, we have shown that it is possible to induce the expression of the MnSOD gene in vivo by carotenoid treatment. Changes in the activities of antioxidant enzymes by other carotenoids, such as ß-carotene, have been reported previously in vitro in cultured cells. It has been demonstrated that ß-carotene treatment of human oral carcinoma cells significantly reduces the activities of SOD and glutathione S-transferase (Schwartz et al. 1992Citation ). Evidence that carotenoids may modify the activities of antioxidant enzymes has been also reported in vivo. A significant decrease in erythrocyte SOD activity was observed in adult women consuming a ß-carotene–deficient diet (Dixon et al. 1994Citation ). In the same study, dietary ß-carotene repletion (15 mg/d for 28 d) increased SOD activity. In addition, carotenoid-rich food extracts [250 µg/(kg body wt·d) for 14 wk] lowered plasma glutathione, blood SOD and blood catalase in rats treated with aflatoxin B1 (He et al. 1997Citation ) Finally, dietary supplementation of rats with ß-carotene (80000 IU/kg diet for 6 wk) modulated the increase of SOD induced by peroxyl radicals produced by a high fat diet (Blakely et al. 1988Citation ).

Although these results are rather controversial, they point out that carotenoids may alter the activities of oxygen-protective enzymes; consequently, they may induce cellular oxidative stress by acting as prooxidants. According to this hypothesis, powerful oxidants, such as paraquat, similarly modulate antioxidant enzymes in cultured cells, increasing SOD and catalase activities and decreasing GSH-Px activity (Lawlor and O’Brien 1997Citation ). Moreover, it has been demonstrated that MnSOD activity is increased by generators of reactive oxygen species, such as oxidants, ionizing radiations, cytokines, tumor necrosis factor-{alpha} and lipopolysaccharide in different experimental models (De Leo et al. 1997Citation ). Thus, the different responses of the three antioxidant enzymes to canthaxanthin treatment may be due to their different roles in oxidative processes as well as their different locations in the cells. MnSOD is located in the mitochondria, catalase in peroxisomes and GSH-Px in cytoplasm. On the other hand, the reduced activity of GSH-Px may be responsible for the lack of increased GSSG levels. It is also possible that the dose as well as the concomitant presence of an oxidative stress may influence the modulating effect of carotenoids on the antioxidant enzymes in vivo. Such a hypothesis is supported by experiments in vitro. In chicken embryo fibroblasts, ß-carotene modulated the activity of SOD, catalase and GSH-Px in a concentration-dependent manner, i.e., at a high concentration (10 µmol/L) it increased SOD and catalase activities and decreased GSH-Px activity, whereas at a low concentration (0.1 µmol/L), it induced the opposite effects (Lawlor and O’Brien 1995Citation ). In addition, when a prooxidant agent such as paraquat was used in the same model, ß-carotene prevented the paraquat-induced elevation of catalase and SOD activities and the reduction of GSH-Px activity at low but not at high concentrations (Lawlor and O’Brien 1997Citation ). It is interesting to note that such a modulation also varied under different partial pressures of oxygen (Lawlor and O’Brien 1997Citation ).

It has been hypothesized that carotenoids may act as prooxidant agents by forming carotenoid radical species in the presence of oxygen (Burton and Ingold 1984Citation ). This study suggests that carotenoid molecules could also act as prooxidants by modulating the iron content in tissues. A significantly greater iron concentration was observed in liver of mice treated with canthaxanthin than in controls. This is inconsistent with the observation of Blakely et al. (1991)Citation , who reported that canthaxanthin feeding lowered liver nonheme iron concentrations in rats. This difference may be due to the different doses of canthaxanthin as well as to the different animal model. Blakely et al. (1991)Citation supplemented canthaxanthin to the diet of rats for 8 wk, but at a much higher canthaxanthin concentration [2 g/kg diet, which corresponds to an oral dose of ~100 µg/(g body wt·d) estimated from food intakes and body weights] than that administered by gavage to mice in this study. In contrast, it has been shown recently that vitamin A (from 0.37 to 2.78 µmol/100 g cereal) and ß-carotene (from 0.58 to 2.06 µmol/100 g cereal) can improve iron absorption from foods in humans (Garcia-Casal et al. 1998Citation ). The mechanism may involve the formation of a complex between carotenoids and iron, keeping them soluble in the intestinal lumen and preventing the inhibitory effects of phytates and polyphenols on iron absorption (Garcia-Casal et al. 1998Citation ). Several studies have shown that iron increased the levels of endogenous free oxy-radicals through Fenton reactions (Halliwell and Gutteridge 1990Citation ). On the other hand, it has been suggested that this ion is also involved in the transcriptional regulation of antioxidant enzymes (De Leo et al. 1997Citation ).

It is interesting to note, however, that canthaxanthin did not modify in vivo lipid peroxidation as measured by MDA production, suggesting that the modulation of the endogenous antioxidant defenses is still able to limit possible prooxidant effects of the carotenoid on cell membranes.

Further investigations are required to clarify the prooxidant role of carotenoids and the mechanisms of their interactions with cell antioxidants in vivo by varying carotenoid dose as well as cell antioxidant status. However, our study suggests that canthaxanthin may alter protection against oxidative stress in vivo. This observation could justify the dual role of carotenoids as antitumor or tumor-promoting agents. When the prooxidant activity of carotenoids occurs in normal cells, this could generate oxidative damage, which may depress cell integrity and/or induce neoplastic transformation. In contrast, when carotenoids act as prooxidants in already transformed cells, which exhibit low antioxidant defenses (Masotti et al. 1988Citation ), they could have beneficial effects, inhibiting tumor growth.


    ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
 
The authors would like to thank Tommaso Galeotti for his helpful suggestions and comments on the manuscript.


    FOOTNOTES
 
1 Supported by grants from Murst 60% and ex 40%. Back

3 Abbreviations used: C, control group; Cx, canthaxanthin-treated group; GSH, glutathione; GSH-Px, glutathione peroxidase; GSSG, oxidized glutathione; MDA, malondialdehyde; SOD, superoxide dismutase; TBA, thiobarbituric acid. Back

4 The diet had the following composition (g/100 g): crude protein, 23; fat, 5.5; fiber, 5; minerals, 8; carbohydrates, 58.5; and water, 12. The diet provided (g/kg): (n-6) polyunsaturated fatty acids (18:2), 7.5 and (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (18:3, 18:4, 20:5 and 22:6), 1.02. The vitamin mixture added to the diet was 2.5 g/kg and contained: all-rac-{alpha}-tocopherol acetate, 0.1; retinyl palmitate, 0.06; cholecalciferol, 0.00005; vitamin C, 0.1; choline chloride, 1; biotin, 0.2; folic acid, 0.01; DL-methionine, 3.5; vitamin B-12, 0.00003; calcium pantothenate, 0.00005; and thiamin·HCl, 0.00015. The mineral mixture added to the diet was 0.52 g/kg and contained: Fe, 0.12; Mg, 0.06; Zn, 0.02; Cu, 0.005; Co, 0.0004; and Se, 0.0005. Back

Manuscript received September 13, 1999. Initial review completed October 20, 1999. Revision accepted January 26, 2000.


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 ABSTRACT
 INTRODUCTION
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 RESULTS
 DISCUSSION
 REFERENCES
 

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