Effect of Vitamin E Supplementation on Lipid Peroxide Levels of Blood and Liver in Zinc Deficient Rats

ABSTRACT

To study antioxidant role of zinc, the effects of dietary zinc deficiency and vitamin E supplementation on lipid peroxidation were studied. Levels of zinc and vitamin E in blood and liver were also measured. Forty Sprague-Dawley male rats aging 8 weeks old were used as experimental animals. Zinc deficient diet (Zn, 0 ppm), zinc normal diet (Zn, 36.5 ppm), and vitamin E supplemented diet (1,000 IU alpha-tocopherol/kg of diet) were used as experimental diet. During the first three weeks, rats were divided into zinc normal (ZnN, 8 animals) and zinc deficient (ZnD, 32 animals) group. Eight rats from each group were sacrificed to get blood and liver after 3 weeks of experiment. The remaining 24 zinc deficient rat were then divided into zinc normal (ZnDN), zinc deficient (ZnDD), vitamin E supplemented (ZnDE) diet groups. After another 3 weeks of experiment, all animals were sacrificed as well. Thiobarbituric acid reactive substance (TBARS) levels in plasma and liver, conjugated diene levels in liver were measured as lipid peroxidation index. There were no significant differences in food intake, body weight gain, and food efficiency ratio among groups. Weights of liver per 100 g body weight were not significantly different. There were no significant differences in Zn levels in serum. Plasma and liver TBARS level, and liver conjugated diene level were significantly lower in ZnDE than in ZnDN or ZnDD, and significantly higher in ZnDD than in ZnDN. Therefore, it seems that lipid peroxidation is accelerated by dietary zinc deficiency and recovered partly by vitamin E supplementation.