Abstract

EVALUATING THE CARDIOPROTECTIVE EFFECT OF FUNGAL DIGOXIN AGAINST MYOCARDIAL INFARCTION INDUCED IN ALBINO RATS

Doaa S. Mansour*, Dalia R. Ibrahim, Salwa N. A. Mater, H. M. Essam* and El-Sayed R. El-Sayed*

ABSTRACT

Myocardial infarction (MI) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality. It is related to inflammation, oxidative stress, and apoptosis, and their inhibition could be a chief therapeutic target for protection against myocardial infarction. Digoxin (DIG) is a cardiac glycoside that has a narrow therapeutic window and is associated with cardio-toxicity. The present study was carried out to assess the possible cardio-protective effect of the cardiac glycoside digoxin (produced from Epicoccum nigrum) against adrenaline-induced MI in rats. Forty male albino rats were divided into four groups; control, control MI (adrenaline-injected rats), digoxin group, and co-treated group (digoxin pretreatment in adrenaline-injected rats). Markers were chosen to assess the cardiac damage; serum levels of cardiac enzymes as cardiac troponin I (cTn-I), cardiac troponin T (cTn-T), creatine phosphokinase (CPK), creatine kinase-MB (CK-MB), and lactate dehydrogenase(LDH); inflammatory cytokines as tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-10; and the proinflammatory marker C-reactive protein (CRP). Moreover, oxidative stress biomarkers such as cardiac contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione peroxidase (GSH); histopathological checks were assessed. Adrenaline increased the level of cardiac enzymes as well as inflammatory and oxidative stress biomarkers. Pretreatment with DIG (2 mg mL-1) significantly (P ≤ 0.05) upgraded previous parameters. DIG can be verified as a promising cardio-protective agent in myocardial infarction due to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.

Keywords: Fungal digoxin; adrenaline, myocardial infarction, inflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress.