Antihypertensive Effects of Roselle-Olive Combination in L-NAME-Induced Hypertensive Rats

Oxid Med Cell Longev. 2017:2017:9460653. doi: 10.1155/2017/9460653. Epub 2017 Oct 22.

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the antihypertensive efficacy of a new combination therapy of Hibiscus sabdariffa and Olea europaea extracts (2 : 1; Roselle-Olive), using N(G)-nitro-L-arginine-methyl ester- (L-NAME-) induced hypertensive model. Rats received L-NAME (50 mg/kg/day, orally) for 4 weeks. Concurrent treatment with Roselle-Olive (500, 250, and 125 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks) resulted in a dose-dependent decrease in both systolic and diastolic blood pressure, reversed the L-NAME-induced suppression in serum nitric oxide (NO), and improved liver and kidney markers, lipid profile, and oxidative status. Furthermore, Roselle-Olive significantly lowered the elevated angiotensin-converting enzyme activity (ACE) and showed a marked genoprotective effect against oxidative DNA damage in hypertensive rats. Roselle-Olive ameliorated kidney and heart lesions and reduced aortic media thickness. Real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry showed an enhanced endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene and protein expression in both heart and kidney of Roselle-Olive-treated rats. To conclude, our data revealed that Roselle-Olive is an effective combination in which H. sabdariffa and O. europaea synergistically act to control hypertension. These effects are likely to be mediated by antioxidant and genoprotective actions, ACE inhibition, and eNOS upregulation by Roselle-Olive constituents. These findings provide evidences that Roselle-Olive combination affords efficient antihypertensive effect with a broad end-organ protective influence.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antihypertensive Agents / chemistry
  • Antihypertensive Agents / pharmacology
  • Antihypertensive Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Blood Pressure / drug effects
  • DNA Damage / drug effects
  • Electrocardiography
  • Heart / drug effects
  • Heart / physiology
  • Hibiscus / chemistry*
  • Hibiscus / metabolism
  • Hypertension / chemically induced
  • Hypertension / drug therapy*
  • Hypertension / pathology
  • Kidney / drug effects
  • Kidney / metabolism
  • Kidney / pathology
  • Lipid Metabolism / drug effects
  • Male
  • Malondialdehyde / metabolism
  • NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester / toxicity
  • Nitric Oxide / metabolism
  • Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III / genetics
  • Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III / metabolism
  • Olea / chemistry*
  • Olea / metabolism
  • Oxidative Stress / drug effects
  • Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / metabolism
  • Plant Extracts / chemistry
  • Plant Extracts / pharmacology
  • Plant Extracts / therapeutic use*
  • Rats
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Reactive Oxygen Species / metabolism

Substances

  • Antihypertensive Agents
  • Plant Extracts
  • Reactive Oxygen Species
  • Nitric Oxide
  • Malondialdehyde
  • Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III
  • Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A
  • NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester