Beneficial impacts of Astaxanthin on biomarkers of antioxidant status and oxidative damage in rats exposed to ambient air

Abstract

Effect of astaxanthin from Haematococcus pluvialis on lipid peroxidation and oxidative stress induced by ambient air exposure was studied.  Wistar albino rats were exposed to ambient air was administered with astaxanthin in doses varying between 0.5 to 2% of food intake. Various  biological parameters like ALT, AST, ALP, malondialdehyde, hydrogen peroxide, superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione reductase,  were estimated biochemically and the expression of Nrf2 and glutathione peroxidase genes were estimated by reverse transcriptase PCR.  Plasma ALT, AST, ALP, MDA and the activity of antioxidant enzymes; SOD, GRd, catalase were found increased significantly in ambient air  exposed  rats. Ambient air exposure decreased the  levels  of  glutathione,  non protein  thiols and GPx expression whereas  total  thiols and  expression  of  Nrf2  increased.  However  the  concurrent  administration  of  astaxanthin  was found to reverse these changes in a dose dependent  manner. The results of this study revealed the ability of astaxanthin to alleviate liver toxicity and oxidative stress induced by ambient air  exposure and points to the possibility of developing astaxanthin as a dietary supplement that reduce the ill effect of toxic chemicals from  ambient air.