Natural Compounds Rosmarinic Acid and Carvacrol Counteract Aluminium-Induced Oxidative Stress

Aluminum accumulation, glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations as well as catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities were determined in erythrocytes and brain and liver homogenates of BALB/c mice treated with Al³⁺ (7.5 mg/kg/day (0.15 LD₅₀) as AlCl₃ (37.08 mg/kg/day), whereas HCl (30.41 mg/kg/day) was used as Cl^- control, the treatments were performed for 21 days, i.p., in the presence and absence of rosmarinic acid (0.2805 mg/kg/day (0.05 LD₅₀), 21 days, i.g.) or carvacrol (0.0405 mg/kg/day (0.05 LD₅₀), 21 days, i.g.). The treatment with AlCl₃ increased GSH concentration in erythrocytes only slightly and had no effect on brain and liver homogenates. Rosmarinic acid and carvacrol strongly increased GSH concentration in erythrocytes but decreased it in brain and liver homogenates. However, AlCl₃ treatment led to Al accumulation in mice blood, brain, and liver and induced oxidative stress, assessed based on MDA concentration in the brain and liver. Both rosmarinic acid and carvacrol were able to counteract the negative Al effect by decreasing its accumulation and protecting tissues from lipid peroxidation. AlCl₃ treatment increased CAT activity in mice brain and liver homogenates, whereas the administration of either rosmarinic acid or carvacrol alone or in combination with AlCl₃ had no significant effect on CAT activity. SOD activity remained unchanged after all the treatments in our study. We propose that natural herbal phenolic compounds rosmarinic acid and carvacrol could be used to protect brain and liver against aluminum induced oxidative stress leading to lipid peroxidation.