Comparative Antioxidant Effectiveness of Dietary β-Carotene, Vitamin E, Selenium and Coenzyme Q10 in Rat Erythrocytes and Plasma

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Abstract
Five groups of five weanling rats were each fed a Torula yeast-based diet either unsupplemented or supplemented with 30 mg β-carotene/kg, 30 KI vitamin E/kg, 1 mg selenium/kg or 30 mg coenzyme Q10/kg. Elevated levels of plasma aspartate aminotransferase and alanine aminotransferase are sensitive indicators of liver damage. The former enzyme was lower (P < 0.01) in the vitamin E-, selenium- and β-carotene-supplemented groups than in the unsupplemented control group, and the latter enzyme was lower in the vitamin E- and selenium-supplemented groups, suggesting a relatively equal effectiveness of these three antioxidants against liver damage. Erythrocytes were tested for protection against uninduced oxidative damage or that induced by 1 mmol/L bromotrichloromethane (BrCl3C) by measuring thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS), hemoglobin, hemolysis, protein precipitation, alanine release and several enzyme activities. In untreated erythrocytes, selenium, β-carotene and coenzyme Q10 exhibited protection by lowering (P < 0.05) TBARS and alanine release, but only vitamin E protected against hemolysis. In BrCl3C-treated erythrocytes, vitamin E, selenium and β-carotene protected by decreasing (P < 0.05) protein precipitation, whereas selenium and β-carotene decreased alanine release. The results of this study suggested that, in a manner analogous to vitamin E and selenium, β-carotene and coenzyme Q10 function as antioxygenic nutrients.