Efeitos da associação de benfotiamina e ácido alfa-lipóico no tratamento de doença hepática alcoólica em modelo experimental

Abstract

Introduction: Alcoholic liver disease (ALD) is a result of alcohol abuse and its evolution is a result of the oxidative stress developed by this ethanol intake and its metabolism. The possibility of the combined use of antioxidants merits further investigation in order to find more conclusive data on their combined use. Objectives: To evaluate the association between benfotiamine (BT) and alpha lipoic acid (ALA) as a treatment for liver damage caused by chronic ethanol ingestion in an experimental model. Material and methods: Thirty-two male Wistar rats, 60-90g, after a period of adjustment and adaptation to the liquid diet, and were submitted to protocol for the development of ALD and after 30 days were divided into 4 groups: E (ethanol) , EA (ethanol + alpha-lipoic acid), EB (ethanol + benfotiamine), EAB (ethanol + alpha-lipoic acid + benfotiamine) and received antioxidant supplementation for 14 days as a treatment. At the end of the experiment, the animals were euthanized and the liver were collected for analysis. Results: There was no difference between consumption and weight evolution between the groups. There was also no statistically significant difference in relation to the concentration of non-protein thiols and the enzymatic activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase. The concentration of vitamin E was higher in the group supplemented with alpha lipoic acid, and malondialdehyde had a lower concentration in the EAB group. Conclusion: The results of the present study allow to conclude that the combined supplementation of two antioxidants can bring benefits through the influence exerted on components of the non-enzymatic antioxidant defense system as well as its direct action through the hydrogen donation to radical species. To elucidate this issue, more future studies are needed.