ABSTRACT
PURPOSE: An IRI (Ischemia-reperfusion injury) of the liver is one of the main problems in major liver surgery, liver transplantation and liver trauma, which can lead to liver failure. The mechanism of a liver IRI is supposed to be highly related to the oxygen free radicals (Should the read, "free oxygen radicals"?) made in the course of the damage process. Therefore, antioxidants must be one of the most effective therapeutic modalities for liver IRI. Haematococcus pluvialis contains a lot of astaxanthin, which is known of powerful antioxidant. Since the use of synthetic astaxanthin is not permitted to humans, only naturally produced astaxanthin, such as Haematococcus, is a candidate for use. In this report, the antioxidant effects of a Haematococcus extract has been studied and compared with other antioxidants and synthetic astaxanthin. METHODS: To evaluate the effect of the Haematococcus extract in a liver IRI, the mouse liver IRI model was employed. Following ischemia for 60 minutes, three reperfusion periods were used; 3, 24 and 48 hours. The MDA (malondialdehyde) values in the liver, lungs and serum were all evaluated, and two types of Haematococcus extract compared with other antioxidants and synthetic astaxanthin. RESULTS: In all tissues and serum, the antioxidants all produced lower levels of MDA than in the control. The oil- extracted Haematococcus group had much lower MDA levels compared to the biomass Haematococcus and other antioxidants groups. The effects of synthetic astaxanthin are similar to those of oil-extracted Haematococcus. CONCLUSION: The Haematococcus extract has very potent antioxidant effects compared with vitamin E and Superoxide dismutase (SOD) in protecting the liver from IRI. Oil-extracted Haematococcus is better than biomass Haematococcus, and was even comparable to the effects of synthetic astaxanthin.