Cytoprotective and suicidal signaling in oxidative stress

Oxidative stress is an imbalance between pro-oxidants and antioxidants in favor of the pro-oxidants, leading to different responses depending on the level of pro-oxidants achieved and the duration of exposure. In this article, we discuss the cytoprotective or suicidal signaling mechanisms associated with oxidative stress by addressing: (i) the development of an acute and mild pro-oxidant state by thyroid hormone administration eliciting the redox upregulation of the expression of proteins affording cell protection as a preconditioning strategy against ischemia-reperfusion liver injury; and (ii) the role of prolonged and severe oxidative stress and insulin resistance as determinant factors in the pathogenesis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease associated with obesity.

Upregulation of liver inducible nitric oxide synthase following thyroid hormone preconditioning: suppression by N-acetylcysteine

3,3-5-L-Triiodothyronine (T3) exerts significant protection against ischemia-reperfusion (IR) liver injury in rats. Considering that the underlying mechanisms are unknown, the aim of this study was to assess the involvement of inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression and oxidative stress in T3 preconditioning (PC). Male Sprague-Dawley rats given a single dose of 0.1 mg of T3/kg were subjected to 1-hour ischemia followed by 20 hours reperfusion, in groups of animals pretreated with 0.5 g of N-acetylcysteine (NAC)/kg 0.5-hour prior to T3 or with the respective control vehicles. At the end of the reperfusion period, liver samples were taken for analysis of iNOS mRNA levels (RT-PCR), liver NOS activity, and hepatic histology. T3 protected against hepatic IR injury, with 119 percent enhancement in liver iNOS mRNA/18S rRNA ratios (p<0.05) and 12.7-fold increase (p<0.05) in NOS activity in T3-treated animals subjected to IR over values in control-sham operated rats, with a net 7.7-fold enhancement (p<0.05) in the net effect of T3 on liver iNOS expression and a net enhancement of 0.58 units in NOS activity, changes that were abolished by NAC treatment before T3. It is concluded that T3-induced liver PC is associated with upregulation of iNOS expression as a protective mechanisms against IR injury, which is achieved through development of transient and reversible oxidative stress.

Effects of weight loss on liver and erythrocyte polyunsaturated fatty acid pattern and oxidative stress status in obese patients with non-alcoholic fatty liver disease

Our aim was to study the influence of weight loss on the fatty acid (FA) composition of liver and erythrocyte phospholipids and oxidative stress status in obese, non-alcoholic, fatty liver disease (NAFLD) patients. Seven obese NAFLD patients who underwent subtotal gastrectomy with a gastro-jejunal anastomosis in roux and Y were studied immediately and 3 months after surgery. Seven non-obese patients who underwent anti-reflux surgery constituted the control group. Serum F2-isoprostane levels were measured by GS/NICI-MS/MS and FA composition was determined by GC. At the time of surgery, controls and obese patients exhibited a hepatic polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) pattern that correlated with that of erythrocytes. Three months after surgery, NAFLD patients lost 21 percent of initial body weight; serum F2-isoprostane levels decreased by 76 percent; total PUFA, long-chain PUFA (LCPUFA), n-3 PUFA, and n-3 LCPUFA increased by 22, 29, 81, and 93 percent, respectively; n-6/n-3 LCPUFA ratio decreased by 51 percent; docosahexaenoic acid/docosapentaenoic acid ratio increased by 19-fold; and the n-3 product/precursor ratio (20: 5 + 22: 5 + 22: 6)/18: 3 increased by 164 percent (p<0.05). It is concluded that weight loss improves the n-3 LCPUFA status of obese patients in association with significant amelioration in the biomarkers of oxidative stress, membrane FA insaturation, and n-3 LCPUFA biosynthesis capacity, thus representing a central therapeutic issue in the improvement of obesity-related metabolic alterations involved in the mechanism of hepatic steatosis.

Study of Cytochrome P450 2E1 and its allele Variants in Liver Injury of Nondiabetic, Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis Obese Women

CYP2E1 enzyme is related to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) due to its ability for reactive oxygen species production, which can be influenced by polymorphisms in the gene. The aim of this study was to investigate hepatic levels, activity, and polymorphisms of the CYP2E1 gene to correlate it with clinical and histological features in 48 female obese NASH patients. Subjects were divided into three groups: (i) normal; (ii) steatosis; and (iii) steatohepatitis. CYP2E1 protein level was assayed in microsomes from liver biopsies, and in vivo chlorzoxazone hydroxylation was determined by HPLC. Genomic DNA was isolated for genotype analysis through PCR. The results showed that liver CYP2E1 content was significantly higher in the steatohepatitis (45 percent; p=0.024) and steatosis (22 percent; p=0.032) group compared with normal group. Chlorzoxazone hydroxylase activity showed significant enhancement in the steatohepatitis group (15 percent, p=0.027) compared with the normal group. c2 rare allele of RsallPstl polymorphisms but no C allele of Dral polymorphism was positively associated with CHZ hydroxylation, which in turn is correlated with liver CYP2E1 content (r=0.59; p=0.026). In conclusion, c2 allele is positively associated with liver injury in NASH. This allele may determine a higher transcriptional activity of the gene, with consequent enhancement in pro-oxidant activity of CYP2E1 thus affording liver toxicity.

The role of thyroid hormone calorigenesis in the redox regulation of gene expression

Thyroid hormone (TH; 3,3',5-triiodothyronine, T3) is required for the normal function of most tissues, with major effects on 0(2) consumption and metabolic rate. These are due to transcriptional activation of respiratory genes through the interaction of T3-liganded TH receptors with TH response elements or the activation of intermediate factors, with the consequent higher production of reactive 0(2) species (ROS) and antioxidant depletion. T3-induced oxidative stress in the liver triggers the redox upregulation of the expression of cytokines (tumor necrosis factor-alfa [TNF-alfa], interleukin-10), enzymes (inducible nitric oxide synthase, manganese superoxide dismutase), and anti-apoptotic proteins (Bcl-2), via a cascade initiated by TNF-alfa produced by Kupffer cells, involving inhibitor of kB phosphorylation and nuclear factor-kB activation. Thus, TH calorigenesis triggers an expression pattern that may represent an adaptive mechanism to re-establish redox homeostasis and promote cell survival under conditions of ROS toxicity secondary to TH-induced oxidative stress. Mechanisms of expression of respiratory and redox-sensitive genes may be functionally integrated, which could be of importance to understand the complexities of TH action and the outcome of thyroid gland dysfunction.

Mecanismos moleculares en el daño por isquemia-reperfusión hepática y en el preacondicionamiento isquémico / Molecular mechanisms in liver ischemic-reperfusion injury and ischemic preconditioning

Ischemia-reperfusion (IR) liver injury is associated with temporary clamping of hepatoduodenal ligament during liver surgery, hypoperfusion shock and graft failure after liver transplantation. Mechanisms of IR liver injury include: i) loss of calcium homeostasis, ii) reactive oxygen and nitrogen species generation, iii) changes in microcirculation, iv) Kupffer cell activation, and (v) complement activation. Pre-exposure of the liver to transient ischemia increases the tolerance to IR injury, a phenomenon known as hepatic ischemic preconditioning (IP). IP involves: i) recovery of the energy supply and calcium, sodium and pH homeostasis, ii) enhancement in the antioxidant potential, and iii) expression of multiple stress-response proteins, including acute phase proteins, heat shock proteins, and heme oxygenase. These observations and preliminary studies in humans give a rationale for the assessment of IP in minimizing or preventing IR injury during surgery and non surgical conditions of tissue hypoperfusion.

Changes in antioxidant enzyme activities and lipid peroxidation related to bromoethylamine-induced renal cytotoxicity

Background. The effect of bromoethylamine (BEA) administration on lipid peroxidation and on the activieties of antioxidant enzymes was studied. Methods. Adult rats received BEA at 1.2 mmol/kg, a dose that produces renal papillary necrosis. Lipid peroxidation assessed by maximal rate in MDA formation, the activities of catalase, superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), and the levels of non-protein sulfhydryls (NPSH) were measured in renal cortex and papilla of control and BEA-treated animals. Results. After BEA treatment, an increment in lipid peroxidation in papilla and cortex was found after 1.5 and 24 hours of treatment. Catalase activity decreased in both regions, but earlier cortex. Conclusion. These data suggest some role of oxidative stress in the mechanism of BEAinduced papillary necrosis

Biochemical mechanisms in hepatotoxicity: oxidative stress induced by xenobiotics and hormonal changes

Cytotoxicity induced by xenobiotics and hormonal changes is a complex event, comprising primary and secondary mechanisms whose joint operation may lead to irreversible molecular changes associated with cell death. In this respect, alcoholic liver cell necrosis may be conditioned either by the generation of ethanol-derived acetaldehyde leading to covalent binding to biomolecules and derangement of key metabolic functions, the production of hypoxic damage secondary to elevated O2 uptake, impairment of membrane functions upon reduction in membrane fluidity, and/or by the development of oxidative stress. The latter mechanism is involved in the hepatotoxic effects of lindane, involving both early direct actions related to the biotransformation of the insecticide and late adaptive changes derived from cytochrome P-450 induction. Thyroid calorigenesis involving an accelerated rate of O2 consumption in the liver determines an increased oxidative stress status due to higher rates of O2 and/or H2O2 production by microsomal, mitochondrial, and peroxisomal electron transport systems, with diminished antioxidant defenses. Hyperthyroidism-induced liver oxidative stress may be associated with cell injury, altered hepatic functions, and potentiation of toxicity by xenobiotics. Liver oxidative stress may be secondarily exacerbated by neutrophil infiltration and/or alterations in Kupffer cell function. These phagocytes release chemical mediators and respiratory burst-related reactive O2 species upon stimulation in the liver, which are potentially toxic for parenchymal cells. As the different factors underlying oxidative stress and the interrelationships between oxidative stress and other cytotoxic mechanisms become better defined preventive and protective interventions will become more clear.

Calorigénesis tiroidea y estres oxidativo celular / Thyroid calorigenesis and cellular oxidative stress

El mantenimiento de la actividad metabólica de la mayoría de los tejidos corporales depende del funcionamiento normal de la glándula tiroidea, la cual sintetiza y libera hormonas (T4, T3) capaces de controlar diversas actividades enzimáticas celulares. El desarrollo de un estado hipertiroideo en vertebrados, además de producir una variedad de síntomas clínicos, aumenta marcadamente la velocidad del metabolismo basal del individuo (Fig. 1), acción conocida como calorigénesis tiroidea, que se caracteriza por un incremento en la velocidad del consumo de O2 total, resultante de los aumentos individuales en la respiración de los tejidos blanco (Fig. 1). Se ha sugerido que la calorigénesis tidoidea está determinada, primeramente, por la interacción de T3 con receptores nucleares de las células blanco, lo cual conduce a un incremento adaptativo en la actividad de enzimas y en el contenido de biomoléculas relacionadas con el metabolismo intermedio y con los sistemas de transporte de electrones celulares. Conjuntamente, se evidencia un aumento en la masa de organelos subcelulares, tales como el retículo endoplásmico liso, mitocondrias y peroxisomas. En la célula hepática se ha demostrado que, como consecuencia de la aceleración del metabolismo oxidativo por la calorigénesis tiroidea, se establece un mayor flujo de electrones a nivel microsomal, mitocondrial y peroxisomal, con un incremento en la generación de O2 -. y/o H2O2 (Fig. 1)