Neuroprotective effects of zinc on antioxidant defense system in lithium treated rat brain

With a view to find out whether zinc affords protection against lithium toxicity the activities of antioxidant enzymes and lipid peroxidation profile were determined in the cerebrum and cerebellum of lithium treated female Sprague Dawley rats. Lipid peroxidation was significantly increased in both the cerebrum and the cerebellum of animals administered with lithium for a total duration of 4 months as compared to the normal control group. On the contrary, the activities of catalase and glutathione-s-transferase (GST) were significantly reduced after 4 months of lithium treatment. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD) was significantly increased in the cerebrum after 4 months lithium administration, whereas in the cerebellum the enzyme activity was unaffected. No significant change in the levels of reduced glutathione (GSH) was found in either cerebrum or cerebellum after 2 months of lithium treatment. However, 4 months lithium treatment did produce significant changes in GSH levels in the cerebrum and in the cerebellum. Zinc supplementation for 4 months in lithium-treated rats significantly increased the activities of catalase and GST in the cerebellum, showing that the treatment with zinc reversed the lithium induced depression in these enzyme activities. Though, zinc treatment tended to normalize the SOD activity in the cerebrum yet it was still significantly higher in comparison to normal levels. From the present study, it can be concluded that the antiperoxidative property of zinc is effective in reversing the oxidative stress induced by lithium toxicity in the rat brain.