Department of Biochemistry, Medical University of Silesia, Zabrze, Poland.
Clin Toxicol (Phila). 2013 Jul;51(6):480-6. doi: 10.3109/15563650.2013.802797. Epub 2013 Jun 4.
The aim of the study was to investigate whether treatment with N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is able to restore erythrocyte glutathione (GSH) content in workers exposed to lead. Additionally, we measured the leukocyte and erythrocyte activities of GSH-related enzymes, such as glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD), and estimated the influence of NAC administration on oxidative stress intensity, which was measured as the lipofuscin (LPS) level in erythrocytes.
The exposed population consisted of 171 healthy males randomly divided into four groups. Workers in the first group (n = 49) were not administered any antioxidants, drugs, vitamins, or dietary supplements, while workers in the remaining groups were treated with NAC at three doses for 12 weeks (1 × 200 mg per day, 2 × 200 mg per day, and 2 × 400 mg per day). All workers continued to work during the study. The blood of all examined workers was drawn two times: at the beginning of the study and after 12 weeks of treatment.
Blood lead levels decreased significantly in all groups receiving NAC compared to those in baseline. Erythrocyte GSH concentrations were significantly elevated in workers receiving 400 and 800 mg of NAC compared to those in baseline by 5% and 6%, respectively. Erythrocyte G6PD activity was significantly elevated in workers receiving 200, 400, and 800 mg of NAC compared to those in baseline by 24%, 14%, and 14%, respectively. By contrast, there were no significant differences in leukocyte G6PD or leukocyte and erythrocyte glutathione reductase (GR) activities before and after treatment. Leukocyte GST activities decreased significantly after treatment in workers receiving 200 mg of NAC by 34%, while LPS levels decreased significantly in workers receiving 200, 400, and 800 mg of NAC compared to those in baseline by 5%, 15%, and 13%, respectively. In conclusion, NAC decreases oxidative stress in workers exposed to lead via stimulating GSH synthesis.
本研究旨在探讨 N-乙酰半胱氨酸（NAC）治疗是否能够恢复接触铅的工人的红细胞谷胱甘肽（GSH）含量。此外，我们还测量了与 GSH 相关的酶（如谷胱甘肽还原酶（GR）、谷胱甘肽-S-转移酶（GST）和葡萄糖-6-磷酸脱氢酶（G6PD））的白细胞和红细胞活性，并评估了 NAC 给药对氧化应激强度的影响，这是通过红细胞中的脂褐素（LPS）水平来衡量的。
暴露人群由 171 名健康男性组成，随机分为四组。第一组（n = 49）的工人未接受任何抗氧化剂、药物、维生素或膳食补充剂，而其余组的工人接受 NAC 三种剂量治疗 12 周（每天 1×200mg、2×200mg 和 2×400mg）。所有工人在研究期间继续工作。所有检查工人的血液均采集两次：研究开始时和治疗 12 周后。
与基线相比，所有接受 NAC 治疗的组的血铅水平均显著降低。与基线相比，接受 400 和 800mg NAC 治疗的工人的红细胞 GSH 浓度分别升高了 5%和 6%。与基线相比，接受 200、400 和 800mg NAC 治疗的工人的红细胞 G6PD 活性分别升高了 24%、14%和 14%。相比之下，治疗前后白细胞 G6PD 或白细胞和红细胞谷胱甘肽还原酶（GR）活性无显著差异。接受 200mg NAC 治疗的工人的白细胞 GST 活性在治疗后显著下降了 34%，而接受 200、400 和 800mg NAC 治疗的工人的 LPS 水平与基线相比分别下降了 5%、15%和 13%。总之，NAC 通过刺激 GSH 合成来减少接触铅的工人的氧化应激。
