Effects of avocado oil in brain mitochondrial ETC function and ROS generation in diabetic rats (960.5)

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is associated with functional and structural changes in the brain leading to neurodegeneration, with oxidative stress playing a role in the development of diabetic brain complications. In some cases, it has been reported that impaired function of the electron transport chain (ETC) may be involved in the development of diabetic encephalopathy and oxidative stress. Recently, we have reported that avocado oil supplementation has beneficial effects in kidney mitochondria during diabetes by increasing the resistance of the ETC to oxidative stress and decreasing ROS production in the complex III. Thus, the main goals of this work were to identify alterations in ETC function of brain mitochondria leading to ROS production in rats with 90‐days of STZ‐induced diabetes and the evaluation of the effects of avocado oil intake in these alterations. No alterations were found in the activity of any of the ETC complexes of diabetic rats. Avocado oil supplementation increases 1.2‐fold the activity of the complex III from diabetic rats and 3.5 times the activity of the complex II of normoglycemic rats. Despite no net changes in ROS generation were detected, a decrease in this parameter was identified in diabetic rats when ROS generation was normalized against complex III activity, with avocado oil further decreasing ROS production in the same group. These data suggest that 90 days of diabetes do not exert important changes in mitochondrial function of brain. However, early avocado supplementation may prevent further development of mitochondrial dysfunction in late stages of diabetes by improving the electron flow in the complex III and decreasing ROS generation.Grant Funding Source: Suuported by CONACYT (130638 to CCR) and CIC‐UMSNH (16.12 to CCR) grants