ADDITIVE EFFECT OF ALCOHOL AND NICOTINE ON LIPID-PEROXIDATION AND ANTIOXIDANT DEFENSE-MECHANISM IN RATS

Cigarette smoking has been established as a major risk factor for athe rosclerosis and also for lung cancer, Nicotine is one of the major tox ic components of cigarette smoke that is believed to be partly respons ible for the deleterious effect of cigarette smoke, Alcohol intake is another major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseas e, Lipid peroxidation is a process associated with the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, The concentration of lipid peroxides is found to be increased in alcohol-treated rats, On nicotine administration along wi th alcohol, an additive effect was observed in lipid peroxidation and the antioxidant defence mechanism, The activity of scavenging enzymes superoxide dismutase, catalase and glutathione reductase was found to be decreased, while the activity of glutathione peroxidase and the con centration of glutathione were increased.