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ARS Home » Plains Area » Grand Forks, North Dakota » Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center » Dietary Prevention of Obesity-related Disease Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #76054
Title: ALTERATIONS IN EXPRESSION OF ANTIOXIDANT ENZYMES IN THE HEART OF RATS FED COPPER DEFICIENT DIET

Author
item ALEXANDER, J - U LOUISIVLLE
item Saari, Jack
item KANG, Y - U LOUISVILLE

Submitted to: Toxicologist
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/15/1997
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Copper deficiency causes severe pathological changes in the heart of rats. Antioxidant enzyme activities in the heart are concomitantly decreased. However, the biochemical and molecular mechanisms for the depression of antioxidant enzymes have not been demonstrated. The present study was therefore undertaken to determine the effect of copper deficiency on expression of antioxidant enzymes. Weanling Sprague-Dawley rats were fed purified sucrose/cornstarch-based diet deficient in copper (0.3 ug/g diet), or containing adequate copper (5.0 ug/g). After 4 weeks, superoxide dismutases (Cu, Zn-SOD and Mn-SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSHpx), and catalase activities and the relative amounts of their mRNAs in the heart were analyzed. All of these enzyme activities were significantly (p<0.01) decreased in the heart of rats fed copper-deficient diet, as reported before. In contrast, the abundance of mRNAs for all of the enzymes were significantly (p<0.01) increased. These results suggest that the inhibition of antioxidant enzyme activities induced by copper deficiency do not occur at the transcription level.