Department of Endocrinology, Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, No. 6 Jiefang Street, Dalian, China.
Rehabilitation Center, Zhejiang Hospital, No. 12 Lingyin Road, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Lipids Health Dis. 2018 Jul 26;17(1):173. doi: 10.1186/s12944-018-0829-y.
Hypercholesterolemia is a well-established risk factor for cardiac damage, which can lead to cardiovascular diseases. Many studies have shown that thymoquinone protected rats from doxorubicin-induced cardiotoxicity and cardiac damage. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible protective effects of thymoquinone against cardiac damage in apolipoprotein E knockout (ApoE) mice.
Eight-week-old male ApoE mice were randomly divided into three groups: control group fed a normal diet (ND group), a high cholesterol diet (HD group) or HD mixed with thymoquinone (HD + TQ group). All groups were fed the different diets for 8 weeks. Blood samples were obtained from the inferior vena cava and collected in serum tubes. The samples were then stored at - 80 °C until used. Coronal sections of heart tissues were fixed in 10% formalin and then embedded in paraffin for histological evaluation. The remainder of the heart tissues was snap-frozen in liquid nitrogen for mRNA or immunohistochemical analysis.
The metabolic characteristics of total cholesterol (TC), low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol (LDL-c), and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) were lower in ApoEHD + TQ mice than in ApoE HD mice. Lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 (LOX-1) gene and protein expression was lower in the heart tissue of ApoEHD + TQ mice than in those of ApoEHD mice. Furthermore, the levels of macrophages and pro-inflammatory cytokines were lower in the cardiac tissues of ApoEHD + TQ mice than in those of ApoEHD mice.
These results indicate that thymoquinone may provide a potential therapeutic target for cardiac damage caused by hypercholesterolemia.
高胆固醇血症是心脏损伤的一个既定危险因素，可导致心血管疾病。许多研究表明，姜黄素能保护大鼠免受阿霉素引起的心脏毒性和心脏损伤。本研究旨在探讨姜黄素对载脂蛋白 E 基因敲除（ApoE）小鼠心脏损伤的可能保护作用。
将 8 周龄雄性 ApoE 小鼠随机分为三组：正常饮食组（ND 组）、高胆固醇饮食组（HD 组）和高胆固醇饮食加姜黄素组（HD+TQ 组）。所有组均喂食不同的饮食 8 周。从下腔静脉取血，置于血清管中。将样品储存在-80°C，直至使用。心脏组织冠状切片用 10%福尔马林固定，然后包埋在石蜡中进行组织学评估。其余心脏组织用液氮快速冷冻，用于 mRNA 或免疫组化分析。
ApoEHD+TQ 小鼠的总胆固醇（TC）、低密度脂蛋白胆固醇（LDL-c）和高敏 C 反应蛋白（hs-CRP）的代谢特征低于 ApoEHD 小鼠。ApoEHD+TQ 小鼠心脏组织中的凝集素样氧化型低密度脂蛋白受体-1（LOX-1）基因和蛋白表达低于 ApoEHD 小鼠。此外，ApoEHD+TQ 小鼠心脏组织中的巨噬细胞和促炎细胞因子水平低于 ApoEHD 小鼠。
这些结果表明，姜黄素可能为高胆固醇血症引起的心脏损伤提供潜在的治疗靶点。
