Angélica Pérez-Juárez

Antiepileptic drugs affect embryonic development when administered during pregnancy, generating severe alterations, such as as cleft lip, spina bifida, heart abnormalities, or neuronal alterations. The compound DL-4-hydroxy-4-phenylhexanamide (DL-HEPB), a phenyl alcohol amide structurally different from known anticonvulsants, has shown good anticonvulsant effects in previous studies. However, its effects on intrauterine development are unknown. So, the purpose of this study was to determine the potential of DL-HEPB to produce alterations in conceptus. Pregnant Wistar rats were orally exposed to 0, 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg of DL-HEPB during organogenesis, and their food consumption and weight gain were measured. On gestation day 21, pregnant females were euthanized to analyze the fetuses for external, visceral, and skeletal malformations. A significant decrease in food consumption and body weight was observed in mothers, without any other manifestation of toxicity. In fetuses, no external malformations, visceral, or skeletal abnormalities, were observed under the dose of 100 mg/kg, while the dose of 200 mg/kg caused malformations in low frequency in brain and kidneys. In view of the results obtained, DL-HEPB could be a good starting point for the design of new highly effective anticonvulsant agents, with much lower developmental toxicity than that shown by commercial anticonvulsants.

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a metabolic disorder whose prevalence has continuously increased worldwide and is associated with dysfunction of the autonomic nervous system and, in particular, that of the sympathetic nervous system (SNS). The objective of this study was to analyze the interaction of DM and the SNS, building a model of sympathectomized diabetic rats to determine alterations in the content of CA (catecholamines) in different intra-abdominal organs. Sympathectomy was conducted with guanethidine (GNT). Additionally, DM was induced with STZ (Streptozotocin). Treatment with GNT decreased norepinephrine (NE) content in all analyzed tissues, with significant differences found in the paraganglia, liver, pancreas, duodenum, and heart compared to the control group. With respect to epinephrine (E), which was only found in the liver, pancreas, and heart, presenting significant differences (p < 0.05) in the heart, a decrease in its concentration was observed for all of the experimental groups with respect to the control. The decrease in dopamine (DA) content due to the GNT–STZ treatment was 30.1% in the heart with respect to the diabetic (STZ) group. The amount of CA in the adrenal medulla indicates the effect of sympathectomy on the GNT group where there was a significant reduction (p < 0.05) of DA. These findings suggest that the elimination of the sympathetic nervous system in diabetic organisms contributed to a decrease in blood glucose; likewise, an alteration in the levels of CA was observed in the different selected organs, possibly attributed to the severity, duration, and pathogenesis of the complications of acute and chronic DM.

Spirulina (formerly Arthrospira) maxima (SP) is a cyanobacterium reported to have great nutritional and pharmacological potential. The objective of this study was to evaluate the protective properties of SP against ethanol-induced toxicity. Male Wistar rats were used in the study and subjected to a 70% partial hepatectomy (PH); they were then divided into five groups. During the experiment, animals in two groups drank an aqueous solution of ethanol (EtOH) (40%, v/v). Additionally, they were administered an SP extract daily at a dose of 200 mg/kg body weight intragastrically. To explore possible mechanisms of action, we examined antioxidant defense enzymes, as well as serum biochemical parameters and histopathological changes in the liver. SP administration normalized elevated glutathione reductase (GR), glutathione (GSH), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) levels, in addition to increased catalase (CAT) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) enzymes. Alterations in biochemical parameters were observed in the groups with PH treated with EtOH associated with a reduction in cholesterol and albumin levels, while glucose and triglyceride levels increased. The histological study supported the protective activity of SP, reducing apoptosis, necrosis, and congestion in the liver. Our findings demonstrated a protective effect of SP against EtOH that is related to less inflammation, a lesser antioxidant effect, and less free radical scavenging activity.