Dietary supplementation with the microalga Galdieria sulphuraria (Rhodophyta) reduces prolonged exercise-induced oxidative stress in rat tissues.

Simona Carfagna,Gabriele Pinto,Antonino Pollio,Daniela Barone,Paola Venditti,Gaetana Napolitano

doi:10.1155/2015/732090

Simona Carfagna, Gabriele Pinto + Show 4 more

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https://doi.org/10.1155/2015/732090

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Abstract

We studied the effects of ten-day 1% Galdieria sulphuraria dietary supplementation on oxidative damage and metabolic changes elicited by acute exercise (6-hour swimming) determining oxygen consumption, lipid hydroperoxides, protein bound carbonyls in rat tissue (liver, heart, and muscle) homogenates and mitochondria, tissue glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase activities, glutathione content, and rates of H2O2 mitochondrial release. Exercise increased oxidative damage in tissues and mitochondria and decreased tissue content of reduced glutathione. Moreover, it increased State 4 and decreased State 3 respiration in tissues and mitochondria. G. sulphuraria supplementation reduced the above exercise-induced variations. Conversely, alga supplementation was not able to modify the exercise-induced increase in mitochondrial release rate of hydrogen peroxide and in liver and heart antioxidant enzyme activities. The alga capacity to reduce lipid oxidative damage without reducing mitochondrial H2O2 release can be due to its high content of C-phycocyanin and glutathione, which are able to scavenge peroxyl radicals and contribute to phospholipid hydroperoxide metabolism, respectively. In conclusion, G. sulphuraria ability to reduce exercise-linked oxidative damage and mitochondrial dysfunction makes it potentially useful even in other conditions leading to oxidative stress, including hyperthyroidism, chronic inflammation, and ischemia/reperfusion.

Highlights

To date the most important products of the health food market contain antioxidant substances, since their intake seems to be negatively correlated with the risk of cancer, strokes, and neurodegenerative affections
We studied the effects of ten-day 1% Galdieria sulphuraria dietary supplementation on oxidative damage and metabolic changes elicited by acute exercise (6-hour swimming) determining oxygen consumption, lipid hydroperoxides, protein bound carbonyls in rat tissue homogenates and mitochondria, tissue glutathione peroxidase and glutathione reductase activities, glutathione content, and rates of H2O2 mitochondrial release
The strain 064 of G. sulphuraria grown in heterotrophic conditions during the semicontinuous phase of cultivation reached a biomass of 32 g L−1 dry weight

Summary

Introduction

To date the most important products of the health food market contain antioxidant substances, since their intake seems to be negatively correlated with the risk of cancer, strokes, and neurodegenerative affections. Algae are a source of fat soluble as well as water soluble antioxidants [3], so health and pharmaceutical industry are focusing their attention on the potential use of algal mass farming for the production of natural antioxidant mixture. G. sulphuraria is able to grow in the dark, utilizing a wide range of carbon sources [6]. It contains high concentration of phycobiliproteins, among which Cphycocyanin (C-PC) is a strong antioxidant which has positive effects on inflammation and heart and kidney injuries [7]. The recent finding that G. sulphuraria from heterotrophic cultures shows favorable macro- and micronutrient profiles has suggested its use in Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity food preparations rich in bioavailable proteins and dietary fibers [10]

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