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. 2021 May 6:2021:6696538.
doi: 10.1155/2021/6696538. eCollection 2021.

Taurine Increases Zinc Preconditioning-Induced Prevention of Nitrosative Stress, Metabolic Alterations, and Motor Deficits in Young Rats following Intrauterine Ischemia

Affiliations

Taurine Increases Zinc Preconditioning-Induced Prevention of Nitrosative Stress, Metabolic Alterations, and Motor Deficits in Young Rats following Intrauterine Ischemia

Alejandro Gonzalez-Vazquez et al. Oxid Med Cell Longev. .

Abstract

Oxygen deprivation in newborns leads to hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, whose hallmarks are oxidative/nitrosative stress, energetic metabolism alterations, nutrient deficiency, and motor behavior disability. Zinc and taurine are known to protect against hypoxic-ischemic brain damage in adults and neonates. However, the combined effect of prophylactic zinc administration and therapeutic taurine treatment on intrauterine ischemia- (IUI-) induced cerebral damage remains unknown. The present work evaluated this issue in male pups subjected to transient IUI (10 min) at E17 and whose mothers received zinc from E1 to E16 and taurine from E17 to postnatal day 15 (PND15) via drinking water. We assessed motor alterations, nitrosative stress, lipid peroxidation, and the antioxidant system comprised of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx). Enzymes of neuronal energetic pathways, such as aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), were also evaluated. The hierarchization score of the protective effect of pharmacological strategies (HSPEPS) was used to select the most effective treatment. Compared with the IUI group, zinc, alone or combined with taurine, improved motor behavior and reduced nitrosative stress by increasing SOD, CAT, and GPx activities and decreasing the GSSG/GSH ratio in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. Taurine alone increased the AST/ALT, LDH/ALT, and AST/LDH ratios in the cerebral cortex, showing improvement of the neural bioenergetics system. This result suggests that taurine improves pyruvate, lactate, and glutamate metabolism, thus decreasing IUI-caused cerebral damage and relieving motor behavior impairment. Our results showed that taurine alone or in combination with zinc provides neuroprotection in the IUI rat model.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing financial interests and personal or other relationships with other people or organizations within five years of beginning the submitted work.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
The effect of preconditioning zinc administration and therapeutic taurine treatment on intrauterine ischemia- (IUI-) induced alterations in surface righting, cliff aversion, grip strength, and hanging impulse. The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5 to 8 pups). P < 0.05, Kruskal–Wallis and post hoc Dunn's multiple comparisons test versus the Control w/t. When compared with the IUI, analyzed by Mann–Whitney U test. s: second; s∗g: second × grams.
Figure 2
Figure 2
The effect of preconditioning zinc administration and therapeutic taurine treatment on intrauterine ischemia- (IUI-) induced alterations in hindlimb and forelimb suspension, negative geotaxis, and gait angle. The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5 to 8 pups). P < 0.05, Kruskal–Wallis and post hoc Dunn's multiple comparisons test versus the Control w/t. Mann–Whitney U test when compared with IUI. s: seconds; s∗g: seconds × grams.
Figure 3
Figure 3
The supplementation of zinc alone or in combination with taurine decreased intrauterine ischemia-(IUI-) induced nitrosative stress. The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5 pups). P < 0.05 compared with the Control w/t group; P < 0.05 compared with the IUI group. One-way ANOVA and Dunnett's post hoc test.
Figure 4
Figure 4
The effect of preconditioning zinc administration and therapeutic taurine treatment on the intrauterine ischemia-(IUI-) induced decrease in antioxidant activity. The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5 pups). P < 0.05 compared with the Control w/t; compared with IUI. One-way ANOVA and Dunnett's post hoc test.
Figure 5
Figure 5
The preconditioning zinc administration and therapeutic taurine treatment increased the antioxidant ability of the GPx-glutathione system in intrauterine ischemia (IUI). The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5 pups). P < 0.05 compared with the Control w/t; compared with IUI. One-way ANOVA and Dunnett's post hoc test.
Figure 6
Figure 6
The combined supplementation of zinc and taurine recovers the intrauterine ischemia-(IUI-) induced effect on cellular metabolism in the temporoparietal cortex. The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5). ∗∗P < 0.05 compared with the Control w/t; compared with IUI. One-way ANOVA and Dunnett's post hoc test.
Figure 7
Figure 7
The combined supplementation of zinc and taurine recovered the intrauterine ischemia-(IUI-) induced effect on cellular metabolism in the hippocampus. The values are the mean ± SEM (n = 5). P < 0.05 with when compared with the Control w/t; when compared with IUI (10 min). One-way ANOVA and Dunnett's post hoc test.

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