Quercetin, a Powerful Antioxidant Bioflavonoid, Prevents Oxidative Damage in Different Tissues of Long-Term Diabetic Rats

Objective: The role of oxidant damage on the development of end-organ injuries caused by diabetic rat is well known. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of quercetin, which is a strong antioxidant bioflavonoid, on oxidant damage and antioxidant capacity in various organs in the case of medium-term or long-term diabetic rat. Material and Methods: Forty-eight male Wistar rats were divided into five groups, namely, control group, diabetic group of 8-weeks, diabetic group of 16-weeks, quercetin treated diabetic group of 8-weeks, and quercetin treated diabetic group of 16-weeks. At the end of the experiment, malondialdehyde levels, superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase activities were measured in the lung, aorta, heart, spleen, liver, and kidney tissues. Results: MDA levels were elevated in all tissues except in the lung in non-treated diabetic groups. Quercetin treatment increased the antioxidant enzyme capacities and considerably reduced oxidant damage. Conclusion: We suggest that quercetin has a protective effect on the aorta, heart, brain, liver, and kidneys from oxidant damage in the case of mediumterm or long-term diabetic rat. It can be argued that quercetin is effective by increasing the antioxidant defence capacity in this process. Turkish Baslik: Guclu Bir Antioksidan Bioflavonoid Olan Quercetin Uzun Sureli Diabetik Sicanlarin Cesitli Dokularindaki Oksidan Hasari Onler Anahtar Kelimeler: Quercetin, diabetes mellitus, oksidan hasar, antioksidan enzimler Amac: Diabetes mellitusun (DM) neden oldugu son organ hasarlarinin gelisiminde oksidan hasarin oynadigi rol iyi bilinmektedir. Bu calismanin amaci orta ve uzun sureli DM ta cesitli dokulardaki oksidan hasara ve antioksidan kapasiteye guclu bir antioksidan bioflavonoid olan quercetinin etkisini arastirmaktir. Hastalar ve Yontemler: Kirksekiz erkek Wistar sican kontrol grubu, diabetik 8 haftalik grup, diabetik 16 haftalik grup, quercetin verilen diabetik 8 haftalik grup ve quercetin verilen diabetik 8 haftalik grup olarak bes gruba ayrildi.Calisma sonunda akciger, aort, kalp, dalak, karaciger ve bobrekteki malondialdehit (MDA)duzeyleri, superoksit dismutaz, katalaz ve glutatyon peroksidaz aktiviteleri saptandi. Bulgular: Quercetin verilmeyen diabetik sicanlardaki MDA duzeyleri akciger disindaki tum dokularda yukseldi. Quercetin antioksidan enzim kapasitelerini artirdi ve oksidan hasar olusumunu onemli miktarda onledi. Sonuc: Calismamizin sonuclarina gore, quercetinin orta ve uzun sureli DM ta aorta, kalp, beyin, karaciger ve bobrekleri oksidan hasardan koruyucu etkisi vardir. Quercetinin bu surecte antioksidan savunma kapasitesini artirarak etkili oldugu soylenebilir. q