The role of reactive oxygen species in action of nitric oxide-donors on stress-induced gastric mucosal lesions.

The experimental model of acute gastritis such as water immersion restraint (WRS) stress-induced gastric injury is useful tool in examination of pathomechanism of acute gastritis. Nitric oxide (NO) plays an important role in the maintenance of gastric barrier, however, the interaction between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and NO on gastric mucosal integrity has been little studied. The purpose of our present study was to explain the participation of ROS in healing of WRS-induced gastric lesions accelerated by NO. Experiments were carrying out on 120 male Wistar rats. To assess gastric blood flow (GBF) laser Doppler flowmeter was used and the number of gastric lesions was counted in each stomach. The colorimetric assays were used to determine gastric tissue level of malondialdehyde (MDA) and 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE), the products of lipid peroxidation by ROS, as well as superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, the enzyme scavanger of ROS. We demonstrated that 3.5 h of WRS resulted in appearance of acute gastric lesions accompanied by a significant decrease of GBF. Biological effects of ROS were estimated by measuring tissue levels of MDA and 4-HNE, as well as the SOD activity. It was demonstrated that 3.5 h of WRS led to significant increase of mucosal levels of MDA and 4-HNE, and it was accompanied by a decrease of SOD activity. Pretreatment with NO-donors (SIN-1, SNAP, nitroglycerin, NO-ASA) resulted in reduction in gastric lesion number, increment of GBF, decrease of MDA and 4-HNE tissue level and increase of SOD activity. Suppression of ROS plays an important role in the action of NO-donors on healing of acute gastric lesions induced by 3.5 h of WRS. NO-donors caused an attenuation of lipid peroxidation as documented by a decrease of MDA and 4-HNE levels and enhancement of antioxidative properties as evidenced by an increase of SOD activity.