Effects of combined parenteral vitamins C and E administration on the severity of anaemia, hepatic and renal damage in Trypanosoma brucei brucei infected rabbits

Rabbits infected with Trypanosoma brucei brucei (Basa isolate) were intrape ritoneally administered with vitamins C and E at 100 mg/kg and 10 mg/kg bod y weight, respectively, from day 7 before infection to day 12 post-infectio n (pi). Another group of rabbits were similarly infected, but received no v itamin treatment. The uninfected (control) rabbits were either untreated or treated with vitamins like the infected group. Treatment of the infected a nimals did not affect the onset and level of parasitaemia. On day 12 pi, th e anaemia tended to be ameliorated, but insignificantly, by the treatment. The infection increased (p < 0.05) serum urea and creatinine concentrations to similar levels in treated and untreated groups. However, the increase ( p < 0.05) in alanine and aspartate tr transaminases in the untreated infect ed animals was prevented in the treated infected ones. Therefore, it seemed that the treatment with antioxidant vitamins boosted their storage in hepa tic cells, but not in erythrocytes and glomeruli, to annul any cellular inj ury due to infection. It is concluded that this may be an indirect evidence that the hepatic damage may be principally due to oxidative injury. (C) 19 99 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.