ABSTRACT
This study evaluated the effects of DHEA on the oxidant [malondialdehyde [MDA]] and antioxidant [superoxide dismutase [SOD], glutathione penoxidase [GPx], catalase [CAT], and glutathione [GSH] systems in liver after renal-ischemia reper fusion [IR] injury in rats. Thirty rats were randomly assigned to 3 groups of 10: group I [Sham operation], group II [renal IR group], and group III [DHEA, 25 mg/kg, sc, 15 min pre-ischemia]. Renal IR injury in group II caused a decrease of SOD [25%], GPx [36%] and CAT [26%] activities and GSH levels [32%] and increases of MDA [30%] in liver and of ALT and AST activities in serum, compared to group I. DHEA administration decreased the hepatic MDA level [19%] and serum ALT activity [30%] [P < 0.01 and P < 0.05, respectively], and considerably increased hepatic GSH levels and GPx activities [P < 0.01 for both] in group III, compared to group II. These results suggest that DHEA treatment has beneficial effects on antioxidant defenses against hepatic injury after renal IR in rats, possibly by augmenting GSH levels and lowering MDA production