The antioxidant effects of vitamin C and vitamin E on oxidative stress

Objective: To determine the antioxidant effect of high dose Vitamin C (Vit C), Vitamin E (Vit E) and Vit C+ Vit E on acute hyperoxic lung injury, using plasma and lung tissue malonyldialdehyde (MDA) levels, as indicators and to compare the degree of peroxidation with histopathological lung changes in a rat model. Design: Randomized, prospective laboratory study. Setting: Animal research laboratory in Aegean University. Subjects: 90 adult male Swiss-albino rats (150-160 g). Intervention: The rats were randomly allocated to one of five groups. Saline was administered intraperitoneally (IP) to group I (normoxic control, n=10) and group II (hyperoxic control, n=20). Vit C (150 mg/kg, n=20), Vit E (100 mg/kg, n=20) and Vit C plus Vit E (150 mg/kg plus 100 mg/kg, n=20) were administered IP to group III, IV and V, respectively. The rats were then exposed to 90% or higher concentrations of oxygen in an isolator for 24 hours. Measurement: Blood samples and lung tissues were taken after 24 hours of their exposure to the hyperoxic conditions. Lipid peroxidation was estimated by measuring plasma MDA level and also lung tissue MDA concentration. Lung injury was assessed histologically. Results: In groups I, II, III, IV and V plasma MDA levels were 46.0±8.4, 17.3±1.4, 33.0±2.0, 62.4±7.1 and 61.5±5.4, respectively. Lung tissue MDA levels in group I, II, III, IV and V were 406.3±26.6, 782.4±53.9, 368.7±23.6, 556.7±65.4 and 274.4±28.6, respectively. Lung injury score in group V was similar to normoxic control group. But, in groups III and IV the lung injury score median values were higher than those of group I and V. Conclusion: Based on our finding, we conclude that simultaneous use of vitamin C and vitamin E are more effective in preventing hyperoxic lung injury than the use of either of these agents alone.