LA NO BIODISPONIBILIDAD IMPLICADA EN LA DEFICIENCIA DE VITAMINA “ A “ EN AORTA DE RATA

GATICA, L V; BIAGGIO, V S; GOMEZ, N N; OLIVEROS, L B; GIMÉNEZ,M S.

Mendoza

Otro; XX REUNION CIENTIFICA ANUAL de la SOCIEDAD DE BIOLOGIA DE CUYO; 2003

Universidad Nacional de Cuyo

ABSTRACT We have previously shown that vitamin A deficiency is associated with an increase of oxidative stress in rat aorta. Nitric Oxide (NO) is a molecule able to control the vasomotor tone. Loss of regulation of its formation is implicated in endothelial dysfunction. Wistar male 21 days old rats were fed during three months with free vitamin A diet (-A) and the same diet plus 8 mg of retinol palmitate/kg of diet (+A). Some -A rats received control diet fifteen days before sacrifice (-A refeeded). Rat aorta proteins were resolved by SDS-PAGE (8%). eNOS was identified by Western blot with specific antibodies and bands were revealed using Vectastain ABC detection kit. NO production was measured in serum and rat aorta, under the form of nitrites. –A group showed increased expression of eNOS and levels of nitrites in rat aorta and serum when compared with +A. Vitamin A addition to the diet totally reverted nitrite levels and eNOS expression to control value (p<0,05 for all the determinations). Vitamin A deficiency is thus implicated in the dysfunction of the NO pathway in rat aorta.