Luteolin reduces cardiac damage caused by hyperlipidemia in Sprague-Dawley rats

Min Dong; Yao Luo; Yong Lan; Qinghua He; Lei Xu; Zuowei Pei

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e17613

Luteolin reduces cardiac damage caused by hyperlipidemia in Sprague-Dawley rats

Heliyon. 2023 Jun 23;9(6):e17613. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e17613. eCollection 2023 Jun.

Authors

Min Dong¹, Yao Luo¹, Yong Lan², Qinghua He³, Lei Xu⁴, Zuowei Pei⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Cardiology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100730, China.
² Department of Vascular Surger, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100730, China.
³ Department of Endocrinology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100730, China.
⁴ Department of Neurology, Beijing Hospital, National Center of Gerontology, Institute of Geriatric Medicine, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, 100730, China.
⁵ Department of Cardiology, Central Hospital of Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, 116033, China.

Abstract

Objective: Hyperlipidemia is a risk factor for cardiac damage that can lead to many cardiovascular diseases. A recent study reported the cardioprotective effects of luteolin in vitro and in vivo. In this study, we aimed to investigate the possible protective effects of luteolin against hyperlipidemia-induced cardiac damage in Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats.

Methods: Six-week-old male SD rats were randomly divided into five groups: a normal diet (ND) group; a high-fat diet (HFD) group; and three high-fat diet mixed with luteolin (HFD + LUT) groups, where in a luteolin dosage 50, 100, or 200 mg/kg/day was administered. All groups were fed their respective diets for 12 weeks.

Results: Left ventricular ejection fraction and fractional shortening (parameters of cardiac function) were lower in the HFD + LUT (100 mg/kg/day) group than in the HFD group. Metabolic parameters were lower in the HFD + LUT (100 mg/kg/day) group than in the HFD group. Collagen I, collagen III, and TGF-β expression levels were lower in the cardiac tissues of the HFD + LUT (100 mg/kg/day) group, compared to those of the HFD group. Expression of the profibrotic genes MMP2 and MMP9 was suppressed in the cardiac tissues of the HFD + LUT (100 mg/kg/day) group, compared to those of the HFD group. Furthermore, CD36 and lectin-like oxidized low-density lipoprotein receptor-1 protein levels were lower in the cardiac tissues of the HFD + LUT (100 mg/kg/day) group, compared to those of the HFD group.

Conclusion: These findings would provide new insights into the role of luteolin in hyperlipidemia-induced cardiac damage and contribute to the development of novel therapeutic interventions to treat cardiovascular disease progression.

Keywords: Cardiac damage; Hyperlipidemia; Luteolin; Sprague-Dawley rat.