Abstract
Simple SummaryA 6 month prospective, controlled clinical trial was conducted to determine the nutritive antioxidant activity of alpha-lipoic acid as a maintenance food for healthy adult (non-gestational, non-lactating) dogs. The results of the study showed that increasing concentrations of alpha-lipoic acid induced a significant increase in the concentrations of intracellular glutathione, an important biomarker of the antioxidant system.This study was designed to determine the effect of alpha-lipoic acid on the glutathione status in healthy adult dogs. Following a 15 month baseline period during which dogs were fed a food containing no alpha-lipoic acid, dogs were randomly allocated into four groups. Groups were then fed a nutritionally complete and balanced food with either 0, 75, 150 or 300 ppm of alpha-lipoic acid added for 6 months. Evaluations included physical examination, body weight, food intake, hematology, serum biochemistry profile and measurements of glutathione in plasma and erythrocyte lysates. Throughout, blood parameters remained within reference ranges, dogs were healthy and body weight did not change significantly. A significant increase of 0.05 ng/mL of total glutathione in red blood cell (RBC) lysate for each 1 mg/kg bodyweight/day increase in a-LA intake was observed. In addition, a significant increase was observed for GSH, GSSG and total glutathione in RBC lysate at Month 6. We conclude that alpha-lipoic acid, as part of a complete and balanced food, was associated with increasing glutathione activity in healthy adult dogs.
Highlights
Alpha-lipoic acid, is a naturally occurring organosulfur compound synthesized by plants and animals, including humans [1,2]
Endogenous lipoic acid is assumed to be sufficient for metabolism, but supplementing a-LA in food may confer additional benefits, and it has been suggested that it may be conditionally essential in aged animals [5]
There was a significant increase of 0.049 ng/mL of GSH and 0.047 ng/mL of total glutathione in red blood cell (RBC) lysate for each 1 mg/kg body weight/day increase in a-LA intake
Summary
Alpha-lipoic acid (often called α-lipoic acid and abbreviated here as a-LA), is a naturally occurring organosulfur compound synthesized by plants and animals, including humans [1,2]. It contains two thiol (sulfur) groups, which may be oxidized or reduced; dihydrolipoic acid (DHLA) is the reduced form of lipoic acid [3]. A-LA supplementation improves glucose metabolism and insulin resistance in rats [17,18]. A-LA has been proven to reduce oxidative stress in rats and canines [20,21]. Studies indicate that a-LA improves neurocognitive function in rodent and canine models [24,25,26]. a-LA is unique as it is soluble in water or lipids and can function as an antioxidant inside and outside cells [7]
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