Effects of quercetin on exercise performance, physical activity and blood supply in a novel model of sustained hind-limb ischaemia.

BACKGROUND: There are currently few effective drugs to treat the leg symptoms of peripheral arterial disease (PAD). Previous studies have suggested that the nutraceutical, quercetin, can improve exercise performance and reduce pain sensitivity in healthy mice and improve blood supply in a rodent model of acute hind-limb ischaemia. These models may not be relevant to people with PAD. The aim of this study was to examine the effect of quercetin on exercise performance, physical activity and blood supply in a novel mouse model of sustained hind-limb ischaemia. METHODS: Hind-limb ischaemia was induced in 6-month-old male apolipoprotein E-deficient mice using a novel two-stage surgical procedure. Five days after induction of ischaemia, mice were allocated to commence dietary quercetin or a control diet for 4 weeks. The primary outcome was exercise performance evaluated using a treadmill test. Other outcomes included physical activity, estimated by an open field test, and hind-limb blood supply, assessed by laser Doppler monitoring. RESULTS: A sustained reduction in relative limb blood supply (P < 0.001) was achieved consistently in all 48 mice before allocation to a control (n = 24) or quercetin (n = 24) diet. Quercetin did not improve exercise performance (P = 0.785), physical activity (P = 0.151) or relative limb blood supply (P = 0.954) over the 4-week assessment period. CONCLUSION: These data suggest that quercetin does not improve exercise performance, physical activity or limb blood supply in mice with sustained hind-limb ischaemia, and therefore is unlikely be an effective treatment for PAD.

Plasma Low-density Lipoprotein Receptor-related Protein 1 Concentration is not Associated with Human Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Presence.

OBJECTIVE/BACKGROUND: Recent genetic data suggest that a polymorphism of LRP1 is an independent risk factor for abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). The aims of this study were to assess whether plasma and aortic concentrations of low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) are associated with AAA, and to investigate the possible relevance of LRP1 to AAA pathophysiology. METHODS: Three analyses were conducted. First, plasma LRP1 concentrations were measured in community-dwelling men with and without AAA (n = 189 and n = 309, respectively) using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Second, Western blotting analyses were employed to compare the expression of LRP1 protein in aortic biopsies collected from patients with AAA and nonaneurysmal postmortem donors (n = 6/group). Finally, the effect of in vitro LRP1 blockade on matrix metalloprotease 9 (MMP9) clearance by vascular smooth muscle cells was assessed by zymography. RESULTS: Plasma LRP1 concentrations did not differ between groups of men with and without AAA (median concentration 4.56 µg/mL [interquartile range {IQR} (3.39-5.96)] and 4.43 µg/mL [IQR 3.44-5.84], respectively; p = .48), and were not associated with AAA after adjusting for other risk factors (odds ratio 1.10 [95% confidence interval: 0.91-1.32]; p = 0.35). In contrast, LRP1 expression was approximately 3.4-fold lower in aortic biopsies recovered from patients with AAA compared with controls (median [IQR] expression 1.72 [0.94-3.14] and 5.91 [4.63-6.94] relative density units, respectively; p < .01). In vitro LRP1 blockade significantly reduced the ability of vascular smooth muscle cells to internalize extracellular MMP9. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that aortic but not circulating LRP1 is downregulated in patients with AAA and indicates a possible role for this protein in clearing an aneurysm-relevant ligand.

Hepatic and cerebral energy metabolism after neonatal canine alimentation.

Intrahepatic and intracerebral metabolic responses to neonatal fasting or enteric carbohydrate alimentation were investigated among newborn dogs. Pups were either fasted or given an intravenous glucose infusion (alimented) before an enteric feeding of physiologic quantities of either glucose or galactose. These pups were also compared to another group which was completely starved throughout the study period. Gastrointestinal carbohydrate feeding resulted in enhanced hepatic glycogen content among pups after a prior state of fasting. Though there were no differences of glycogen content between glucose or galactose feeding in this previously fasted group, combined intravenous glucose and enteric galactose administration produced the greatest effect on hepatic glycogen synthesis. Intrahepatic fructose 1, 6-diphosphate and phosphoenolpyruvate levels were increased among previously fasted pups fed enteric monosaccharides compared to completely starved control pups, whereas intrahepatic phosphoenolpyruvate and pyruvate levels were elevated after combined intravenous and enteric carbohydrate administration. Of greater interest was the observation that hepatic levels of ATP were significantly elevated among all groups given exogenous carbohydrates compared to the completely starved control group. In contrast to the augmented hepatic glycogen and ATP levels, there were no alterations of cerebral glycogen or ATP after alimentation. Nevertheless, cerebral pyruvate and/or phosphoenolpyruvate concentrations were elevated after enteric or combined intravenous and enteric alimentation compared to the totally starved control pups.