Tocotrienols have a nephroprotective action against lipid-induced chronic renal dysfunction in rats

Vitamin E is the generic term for a group of tocopherols and tocotrienols (T3). Hyperlipidemia has been known to cause progressive chronic renal dysfunction (CRD). Several investigators have reported that T3 have hypolipidemic and nephroprotective activity against free radical-related diseases. This study was conducted to determine if T3 as tocotrienol-rich fraction (TRF) from palm oil would protect against lipid-induced CRD in rats. For the induction of atherosclerosis and hyperlipidemia, Wistar male rats were fed an atherogenic diet containing 1.25% cholesterol, 0.5% cholic acid and 21% beef tallow (42.6% calories from fat). The atherogenic diet was given for 14 weeks to induce atherosclerosis. The control rats were given normal rat chow and drug control animals treated with TRF (100 mg/kg bw; orally). The first group was taken as disease control in which the animals were left untreated and given normal rat chow for six weeks, while the second group was treated with 100 mg TRF/kg bw. Atherosclerosis and renal functions were evaluated after six weeks of TRF treatment. Feeding an atherogenic diet to rats for 14 weeks resulted in dyslipidemia and impaired renal functions with decreased glomerular filtration rate. The treatment with TRF significantly reduced dyslipidemia and inhibited the development of CRD caused by atherogenic factors. These findings show that low-dose treatment of TRF may provide significant health benefits in the prevention of lipid-induced CRD. The study suggests that TRF is effective in preventing lipid-induced CRD.