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Cardioprotection by curcumin post-treatment in rats with established chronic kidney disease
Sauri Hernández-Reséndiz1, Francisco Correa, Wylly R García-Niño
1Department of Cardiovascular Biomedicine, National Institute of Cardiology I. Ch, Juan Badiano No. 1. Colonia Sección XVI, México, 14080, DF, Mexico.
Insights
Curcumin treatment improved cardiac function in rats with chronic kidney disease by reducing oxidative stress and inflammation. This suggests curcumin may be a potential therapy for heart disease in chronic kidney disease patients.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Cardiology
- Pharmacology
Background:
- Cardiovascular disorders are the leading cause of death in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients.
- Pathogenic mechanisms of cardiac dysfunction in CKD are not fully understood, but oxidative stress is implicated.
- Current treatments for cardiac complications in CKD are often ineffective.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the therapeutic effect of curcumin on cardiac dysfunction in rats with experimentally induced chronic renal disease.
- To determine if curcumin can mitigate oxidative stress and related cardiac remodeling in CKD.
Main Methods:
- Rats underwent 5/6 nephrectomy to induce CKD.
- Curcumin (120 mg/kg/day) was administered orally for 30 days.
- Cardiac function, oxidative stress markers, signaling pathways, MMP-2, ROS production, and mitochondrial integrity were assessed.
Main Results:
- Curcumin administration improved systolic blood pressure and cardiac dimensions (interventricular septum, posterior wall thickness, LVSd).
- Ejection fraction was restored in nephrectomized rats treated with curcumin.
- Curcumin reduced MMP-2 levels, gelatinase activity, oxidative stress, and inhibited mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening.
Conclusions:
- Curcumin demonstrates therapeutic potential for treating heart disease in patients with established CKD.
- Curcumin attenuates oxidative stress-related cardiac remodeling, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cell death.
- These findings highlight curcumin's role in managing cardiovascular complications associated with CKD.
Purpose:
The pathogenic mechanisms leading to cardiovascular disorders in patients with chronic kidney disease have not been clearly established, although increased oxidative stress has been pointed out as a potential cause. Therefore, as cardiovascular events are still the first cause of death in patients with chronic kidney disease and traditional drugs or therapies rarely have effects on cardiac complications, we sought to determine the effect of curcumin in treating cardiac dysfunction in rats with established chronic renal disease.
Methods And Results:
Treatment consisted in daily administration of curcumin (120 mg/kg/day) dissolved in 0.05% carboxymethylcellulose via oral gavages during 30 days, beginning from day 30 after 5/6 nephrectomy (5/6Nx). Cardiac function, markers of oxidative stress, activation of PI3K/Akt/GSK3β and MEK1/2-ERK1/2 pathway, metalloproteinase-II (MMP-2) content, overall gelatinolytic activity, ROS production and mitochondrial integrity were evaluated after 1-month treatment. Curcumin restored systolic blood pressure, diminished interventricular and rear wall thickening, decreased left ventricle dimension at end-systole (LVSd) and restored ejection fraction in nephrectomized rats. Also, it diminished metalloproteinase-II levels and overall gelatinase activity, decreased oxidative stress and inhibited the mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening.
Conclusion:
Our findings suggest that curcumin might have therapeutic potential in treatment of heart disease in patients with established CKD by attenuating oxidative stress-related events as cardiac remodeling, mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death.
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