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Alcohol and Alcoholism Advance Access published online on February 12, 2009
Alcohol and Alcoholism, doi:10.1093/alcalc/agp004
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© The Author 2009. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Medical Council on Alcohol. All rights reserved

Alcohol, Gestation and Breastfeeding: Selenium as an Antioxidant Therapy

Ma Luisa Ojeda, Fatima Nogales, Beatriz Vázquez, Ma José Delgado, Ma Luisa Murillo and Olimpia Carreras*

Department of Physiology and Zoology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Seville University, 41012 Seville, Spain

* Corresponding author: Departamento Fisiología y Zoología, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Sevilla, C/Tramontana s/n, 41012 Sevilla, Spain. Tel: +34-954-556-518; Fax: +34-954-233-765; E-mail: olimpia{at}us.es

Received 15 September 2008; first review notified 8 December 2008; in revised form 22 December 2008; accepted 16 January 2009


  Abstract

Aim: The aim of this paper is to study the relationship between alcohol, selenium and oxidative stress in breastfeeding rat pups exposed to ethanol during gestation and lactation. We have also studied how a Se-supplemented diet among mothers could prevent different oxidative liver disorders in the pups. Method: Pups of 21 days were randomized into four groups: control group (C), alcohol group (A), alcohol selenium group (AS) and control selenium group (CS). Alcohol was supplied to their mothers for 13 weeks (induction, reproduction, gestation and lactation periods). The selenium-supplemented diet contained 0.5 ppm as selenite. We determined serum and liver selenium by graphite-furnace atomic absorption spectrometry. We measured antioxidant enzyme activities: glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione reductase (GR), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD); and lipid peroxidation (TBARS) and protein carbonyl (PC) by a spectrophotometric method in the liver. Results: In the liver of pups, exposure to ethanol provoked a decrease in selenium and GPx activity and an increase in GR and CAT activity, as well as in carbonyl groups in protein. A pups had higher Se levels and GPx activity in serum than C pups. Administering Se with alcohol balances the activities of scavenging enzymes and reduces peroxidation protein products. Conclusion: These results suggest that selenium could be effective in neutralizing the damage of ethanol consumption during gestation and lactation in pups since it repairs selenium levels in liver as well as the activity of scavenging enzymes and peroxidation protein products. In serum, Se also recovers GPx activity and increases the levels of Se that are available to other organs.


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