Effects of Vitamin A and /beta-Carotene Injection on Levels of Vitamin E and on Glutathione Peroxidase Activity in Pregnant Tuj Sheep

The objective of research was to study the effect of vitamin A and /beta-carotene injections, before breeding and during pregnancy, on the levels of vitamin E in plasma and on the activity of erythrocyte glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) in sheep. Thirty-two healthy female and four healthy male Tuj sheep, 4-5 years old and weighing approximately 57 kg each, were used. The female animals were divided into 4 groups with 8 sheep in each. The oestrus cycles of the ewes were synchronised by the application of sponges containing medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and by the intramuscular administration of 500 IU of PMSG. Twenty-four hours after the injection of PMSG, a ram was added to each group and allowed to mate with the sheep. The first group was used as the control. 8 mg/kg of /beta-carotene (Group II), 200,000 IU of vitamin A (Group III) and a combination of 100,000 IU of vitamin A and 4 mg/kg of /beta-carotene (Group IV) were administered intramuscularly at 30-day intervals, 15 days before breeding and during pregnancy. To measure the levels of vitamin E in plasma and the activity of erythrocyte GSH-Px, blood samples were taken from the jugular vein on days 1 and 15 after injection and after the birth. A statistically significant difference (P < 0.001) was observed during pregnancy in the levels of vitamin E in the plasma of Groups II and IV following injection in comparison with those of the control group. It was also observed that vitamin E levels changed in the treated groups in relation to the time of injection. We further determined that the levels of vitamin E in plasma were little affected by injections of vitamin A. Erythrocyte GSH-Px activity increased in Groups II, III and IV compared with that of the control group (P < 0.001). This increase was higher in the /beta-carotene group than in the other groups. It was concluded that supporting aspects of the antioxidant system such as vitamin E levels and GSH-Px activity with vitamin A and /beta-carotene injections may prevent the undesired effects of the free radicals associated with pregnancy.

Anahtar Kelimeler:

Vitamin A, /beta-carotene, vitamin E, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), pregnancy

Effects of Vitamin A and /beta-Carotene Injection on Levels of Vitamin E and on Glutathione Peroxidase Activity in Pregnant Tuj Sheep

Keywords:

Vitamin A, /beta-carotene, vitamin E, glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), pregnancy,

PDF

___

Graves-Hoagland, R.L., Hoagland, T.A., Woody, C.O.: Relationship of plasma β-carotene and vitamin A to luteal function in postpartum cattle. J. Dairy Sci., 1989; 72: 1854-1858. 2.
Özpınar, H., Özpınar, A., Bilal, T., Türkalp, I., Fırat, A.:
Pharmacokinetics of intramuscular administered β-carotene and
its effects on reproduction in sheep. Wien. Tierarztl. Monat.,
Burton, G.W., Ingold, K.U.: β-carotene: an unusual type of lipid antioxidant. Science., 1984; 224: 569-573.
Asadian, A., Mezes, M., Mirhadi, A.: Effect of vitamin A and E on blood plasma vitamin status and daily body mass gain of different fat-tailed sheep breeds. Acta Vet. Hung., 1996; 44: 99-109.
Blakely, S.R., Mitchell, G.V., Jenkins, M.Y., Grundel, E., Whittaker, P.: Canthaxanthine and excess vitamin A alter α- tocopherol, carotenoids and iron status in adult rats. J. Nutr., 1991; 121: 1649-1655.
Hemingway, R.G.: The influences of dietary intakes and supplementation with selenium and vitamin E on reproduction disease and reproductive efficiency in cattle and sheep. Vet. Res. Commun., 2003; 27: 159-174.
Edge, R., Truscott, T.G.: Prooxidant and antioxidant reaction mechanisms of carotene and radical interactions with vitamins E and C. Nutrition., 1997; 13: 992-994.
Kayden, H.J., Chow, C.K., Bjornson, L.K.: Spectrophotometric method for determination of tocopherol in red blood cells. J. Lipid. Res., 1973; 14: 533.
Lawrence, R.A., Burk, R.F.: Glutathione-peroxidase activity in selenium-deficient rat liver. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 1978; 71: 952-955.
Drapkin D.L.: Haemoglobin spectrometric studies, part XIV. J. Biol. Chem., 1946; 164: 703-708.
Aten, R.F., Duarte, K.M., Behrman, H.R.: Regulation of ovarian antioxidant vitamins reduced glutathione and lipid peroxidation by luteinizing hormone and prostaglandin F2a. Biol. Reprod., 1982; 46: 401-407.
Zamora, R., Hidalgo, F.J., Tappel, A.L.: Comparative antioxidant effectiveness of dietary β-carotene, vitamin E, selenium and coenzyme Q10in rat erythrocytes and plasma. J. Nutr., 1991; 12: 50-56.
Kamiloğlu, N.N., Beytut, E.: Effects of vitamin A and β-carotene injections on reproductive performance and antioxidative defence system in tuj sheeps. PhD thesis. Kafkas University, Kars, Turkey, 2000.
Comps, G.F.: Differential effects of high dietary levels of vitamin A on the vitamin E- Se nutrition of young and adult chickens. J. Nutr., 1978; 106: 967-975.
Bendich, A., Shapiro, S.S.: Effect of beta-carotene and canthaxanthine on the immune response of the rat. J. Nutr., 1989; 116: 2254-2262.
Kormann, A.W., Schlachter, M.: Preliminary trials concerning growth and reproduction of rabbits on variable supplementation of β-carotene and vitamin A. 3rd World Rabbit Congr. Rome, Italy 1984; p 467-474.
Postaire, E., Kouyate, D., Rousset, G., Regnault, C., Lati, E., Bejot, M., Gossioux, P.I, Hazebroucq, G.: Plasma concentration of β-carotene, vitamin A and vitamin E after β-carotene and vitamin E intake. Biomed. Chrom., 1993; 7: 136-138.
Willet, W.C., Stamfer, M.J., Underwood, B.A., Taylor, J.O., Hennekens, C.H.: Vitamins A, E and β-carotene: effect of supplementation on their plasma levels. Am. J. Clin. Nutr., 1983; 38: 559-566.
Aksakal, M., Nazıroğlu, M., Çay, M., Kalkan, C., Kaygusuzoğlu E., Çetin H.: Correlation between plasma levels of vitamin E and progesterone in sheep during pregnancy and after parturition. Turk. J. Vet. Anim. Sci. 1997; 21: 179-182.
Jendryczko, A., Drozdz, M.: Plasma retinol, β-carotene and vitamin E levels in relation to the future risk of pre-eclampsia. Zentralbl. Gynakol. 1989; 111: 1121- 1123.