Name: LAÍS LOPES GONÇALVES
Publication date: 27/03/2024
Examining board:
Name |
Role |
|---|---|
| SONIA ALVES GOUVEA | Examinador Interno |
| VIRGINIA SOARES LEMOS | Examinador Externo |
Summary: Postmenopausal women have a higher incidence of acute myocardial infarction (MI) and a worse prognosis. The main cause of fibrosis and heart failure is MI. We previously demonstrated that Ellagic acid (EA) attenuates diastolic dysfunction by reducing cardiac oxidative stress. Here, we examined the effect of the administration of EA on cardiac fibrosis and other pathological effects induced by MI in female rats that have been exposed to estrogen deprivation. Ovariectomized Wistar rats were subjected to coronary artery ligation to induce MI. The EA (30 mg/kg) was administered by oral gavage daily for four weeks. Hemodynamic parameters were measured through cannulation of the carotid artery. Picrosirius red staining was used to evaluate collagen deposition and to determine the size of the infarction. MMP-8 expression was measured by immunofluorescence. Nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) production were quantified by the DAF-2 and DHE probes, respectively. ELISA was used for the quantification of inflammatory cytokines. MI promoted ventricular dysfunction and cardiac fibrosis. Oral administration of EA reduced the size of the myocardial lesion, improved hemodynamic parameters, decreased the deposition of total collagen, and type I collagen, and increased the deposition of type III collagen. MMP-8 expression and IL-6 production were increased in the heart after MI and EA decreased them. Finally, the administration of EA increased the production of in situ NO and decreased the production of ROS. These data highlight that oral treatment with EA may be a potential natural therapeutic for menopausal women under cardiac stress.
