Full Length Research Paper

A comparative study on the atheroprotective potential of heparin and atorvastatin in hypercholesterolemic rats

Vijayabaskar P¹, Sethupathy S² and Somasundaram S. T¹*

¹Centre of Advanced Study in Marine Biology, Annamalai University, Parangipettai –608 502, Tamilnadu, India.
²Division of Biochemistry, Rajah Muthiah Medical College and Hospital, Annamalai University, Annamalai nagar -608 002, Tamilnadu, India.
 

*Corresponding author. E-mail: drstscas@yahoo.com. Tel.: +91 4144 243223, 243070, Ext. 251. Fax: +91 4144 243555

Accepted 1 May 2008

   Abstract

The present study is to evaluate the effect of standard drug heparin and atorvastatin on the atherogenic disturbances in hypercholesterolemic atherogenic animals. Six groups of male Wistar rats were employed in this study, of which three groups received atherogenic CCT diet (rat chow supplemented with 4% cholesterol, 1% cholic acid and 0.5% thiouracil) for 17 days. Two groups were treated with standard heparin (200 units/kg/day, s.c) and atorvastatin (1.34 mg/kg/day, oral gavage) respectively commencing from 10^th day of the experimental period with the remaining group served as control. Another 3 groups received normal rat chow diet during the entire experimental period. One group received only CCT diet while the other two groups received heparin and atorvastatin respectively. Increase in the plasma levels of cholesterol, triglycerides, high density lipoprotein, very low density lipoprotein and low density lipoprotein induced by CCT diets were normalized by heparin and statin treatment. The CCT diet induced abnormal rise with the plasma hepatic marker enzymes alkaline phosphatase, alanine transaminases and aspartate transaminases, plasma urea, glucose and creatinine levels were restored to normal with the treated groups. The CCT diet induced lecithin cholesterol acyltransferase (LCAT) and lipoprotein lipase (LPL) activities were restored to normal in the treated groups. Standard heparin and atorvastatin intervention minimized the atherogenic diet induced histopathological lesions in liver, kidney and aortic tissues.

Key words: CCT diet, atherosclerosis, standard heparin, atorvastatin, LCAT, LPL.