The state of the glutathione system of the cerebral of rats under the conditions of energy drink consumption
Authors:   Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University, 2 Halytska str., Ivano-Frankivsk, 76018, Ukraine, Lytvyniuk N. I. , Ersteniuk A. M. ,   Ivano-Frankivsk National Medical University, 2 Halytska str., Ivano-Frankivsk, 76018, Ukraine
Published: August 2023

The paper presents the results of studies of the energy drink influence on the state of the glutathione system of the rat brain. Energy tonics belong to a group of drinks containing a large number of active components that are able to stimulate the central nervous system of a person and to increase physical performance, as well as to affect circadian rhythms, extending the period of wakefulness. Literary sources also indicate the negative impact of energy drinks on certain functional systems of the human body. The study was carried out on white rats of the Wistar line weighing 180–200 g, which were on a standard vivarium diet under regulated microclimate parameters (humidity, lighting and temperature regime). All experiments on animals were conducted in compliance with the requirements of the European Convention for the Protection of Vertebrate Animals Used for Experimental and Scientific Purposes (Strasbourg, 1986). A non-inhalation method of anesthesia was used to collect the necessary material, namely intramuscular injection of sodium thiopental at the rate of 60 mg/kg. The experimental animals were divided into 5 groups according to the logical criterion of sample formation: 1st (control group) — rats received drinking water; 2nd — the animals received an energy drink for a month, the material was collected on the 1st day after the end of energy drink consumption; 3rd — animals that received an energy drink for a month, the material was collected on the 10th day after the end of the experiment; 4th — the animals received an energy drink for a month, the material was collected on the 20th day after the end of the experiment; 5th — the rats received an energy drink for a month, the material was collected on the 30th day after the end of the experiment. Determination of the activity of enzymes of the glutathione system (glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase and glutathione transferase) and the enzyme of the pentose phosphate pathway (glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase) was performed using the enzymatic method. The consumption of an energy drink by experimental groups of animals leads to changes in the activity of enzymes of the glutathione system: an increase in the activity of glutathione reductase in the 2nd, 4th, 5th groups, at the same time as a decrease in the activity of this enzyme in representatives of the 3rd group of animals, the activity of glutathione peroxidase increased in the 4th, 5th and decreased in 2nd and 3rd groups, an increase in glutathione transferase activity was observed in all experimental animals. The activity of the enzyme glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase increased in 2.3 and decreased in 4.5 studied groups. The obtained results demonstrated a significant influence of the energy drink on the state of antioxidant protection of the brain tissues of experimental animals, in particular on the state of the glutathione system. The interpretation of enzyme activity indicators proves that energy group drinks can lead to further violations of the ability to maintain the stability of the body’s internal environment.