Intravenous Curcumin Mitigates Atherosclerosis Progression in Cholesterol-Fed Rabbits.

Abstract

Orally administered curcumin has been found to have a moderate therapeutic effect on dyslipidemia and atherosclerosis. The present study was conducted to determine lipid-modulating and antiatherosclerosis effects of injectable curcumin in the rabbit model of atherosclerosis induced by a high cholesterol diet (HCD). New Zealand white male rabbits were fed on a normal chow enriched with 0.5% (w/w) cholesterol for 8 weeks. Atherosclerotic rabbits were randomly divided into three groups, including a control group receiving intravenous (IV) injection of the saline buffer, two treatment groups receiving IV administration of the injectable curcumin at low (1 mg/kg/week) and high (10 mg/kg/week) over 4 weeks. Plasma lipid parameters, including low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), triglycerides (TG), and total cholesterol (TC) were measured. Aortic arch atherosclerotic lesions were assessed using hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining. The low dose of curcumin significantly reduced plasma levels of TC, LDL-C, and TG by -14.19 ± 5.19%, -6.22 ± 1.77%, and - 29.84 ± 10.14%, respectively, and increased HDL-C by 14.05 ± 6.39% (p < 0.05). High dose of curcumin exerted greater lipid-modifying effects, in which plasma levels of TC, LDL-C, and TG were significantly (p < 0.05) decreased by -56.59 ± 10.22%, -44.36 ± 3.24%, and - 25.92 ± 5.57%, respectively, and HDL-C was significantly increased by 36.24 ± 12.5%. H&E staining showed that the lesion severity was lowered significantly in the high dose (p = 0.03) but not significantly (p > 0.05) in the low-dose curcumin groups, compared to control rabbits. The median (interquartile range) of plaque grades in the high dose and low dose, and control groups was found to be 2 [2-3], 3 [2-3], and 4 [3-4], respectively. The injectable curcumin could significantly improve dyslipidemia and alleviate atherosclerotic lesion in HCD-induced atherosclerotic rabbits.

• Authors: Amir Abbas Momtazi-Borojeni, Narges Amel Zabihi, Ramin Khameneh Bagheri, Muhammed Majeed, Tannaz Jamialahmadi, Amirhossein Sahebkar
• Journal: Advances in experimental medicine and biology (Adv Exp Med Biol) Vol. 1308 Pg. 45-54 ( 2021) ISSN: 0065-2598 [Print] United States
• PMID: 33861436 (Publication Type: Journal Article)

Chemical References

• Cholesterol, HDL
• Triglycerides
• Cholesterol
• Curcumin

Topics

• Animals
• Atherosclerosis (drug therapy)
• Cholesterol
• Cholesterol, HDL
• Curcumin (pharmacology, therapeutic use)
• Male
• Rabbits
• Triglycerides