ABSTRACT
Leucine is a regulator of protein metabolism in vivo and information on its action on effort tolerance of both animals and humans with hyperthyroidism is scarce. The objective of the present study was to verify the influence of leucine supplementation on the effort tolerance of Wistar rats with experimental hyperthyroidism. 40 animals were divided into four groups of ten: control (C), hormone (H), leucine (L), and hormone + leucine (HL). Hyperthyroidism was induced by daily administration of 20 µâ g100 g-1 of levothyroxine sodium in aqueous suspension by gavage. Leucine was supplemented by adding 5% of the amino acid to the conventional feed. The animals' blood was collected by cardiac puncture to analyze TSH, T4, and T3 levels. The effort tolerance was determined by the swimming test with a 7% load attached to animals' tails. Statistical analysis was performed using the Shapiro-Wilk normality test, followed by the analysis of variance (ANOVA) of repeated measures of two factors (treatment × time) and Tukey post hoc, with a significance level of p < 0.05. Administering thyroid hormone increased the swimming performance of rats after 14 and 21 days, but with a drop in performance at 28 days. The HL group, on the other hand, had a significantly higher swimming performance compared to the other groups after 28 days of treatment. Leucine supplementation associated with the experimental model of hyperthyroidism improved the performance of rats in a swimming test after 28 days of treatment.
ABSTRACT
Leucine is a regulator of protein metabolism in vivo, but there is little information regarding its effect on hyperthyroidism-induced cardiac hypertrophy. This study aimed to verify the action of leucine in heart hypertrophy using an experimental model of hyperthyroidism in rats. A total of 40 Wistar rats were used and allocated randomly into four groups: control (C), hormone (H), leucine (L) and hormone plus leucine (HL). Hyperthyroidism was induced by administering daily by gavage 20 µg of levothyroxine sodium in aqueous suspension per 100 g of body weight, and leucine was supplemented by adding 5% of the amino acid to conventional food. After 28 days, the heart was removed and weighed; the left ventricle was separated along with the interventricular septum and weighed. Histological slides were made from the left ventricle and stained with hematoxylin-eosin to measure the transverse diameter of cardiomyocytes. Two-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Tukey post-test were used and significance level set at 5%. There was a significant increase in the absolute heart weight, the left ventricular weight and cardiomyocyte diameter in rats of the H group compared to the other groups. The addition of leucine inhibited heart hypertrophy. Levothyroxine sodium-induced cardiac hypertrophy in Wistar rats is inhibited by leucine.
A leucina é um regulador do metabolismo proteico in vivo, e existem poucas informações referentes à sua ação na hipertrofia cardíaca induzida pelo hipertireoidismo. O estudo teve por objetivo verificar a ação da leucina na hipertrofia cardíaca de ratos Wistar em um modelo experimental de hipertireoidismo. Foram utilizados 40 animais, alocados ao acaso em quatro grupos, sendo: grupo controle (C), grupo hormônio (H), grupo leucina (L) e grupo hormônio + leucina (HL). O hipertireoidismo foi induzido administrando-se, diariamente, 20µg/100 gramas de levotiroxina sódica em suspensão aquosa, por gavagem e a leucina foi suplementada adicionando-se 5% do aminoácido à ração convencional. Ao final do período experimental, o coração foi removido e pesado. Foi separado o ventrículo esquerdo juntamente com o septo interventricular e pesado. Foram feitas lâminas histológicas a partir do ventrículo esquerdo, coradas com hematoxilina-eosina, para a medida do diâmetro transversal dos cardiomiócitos. Foi utilizada a análise de variância (ANOVA) de duas vias e pós-teste de Tukey e adotado um P<0,05. Houve aumento significante para o peso do coração, peso do ventrículo esquerdo e diâmetro dos cardiomiócitos no grupo H em relação aos demais grupos. A adição de leucina inibe a hipertrofia. A hipertrofia cardíaca induzida em ratos Wistar pela levotiroxina sódica é inibida pela leucina.
