Combined effects of high-fat diet and ethanol induce oxidative stress in rat liver

Individuals affected by liver steatosis seldom have symptoms of liver injury, but may be particularly vulnerable to oxidative insults. In this study, we evaluated liver redox alterations produced by acute ethanol administration to rats that were fed a high-fat diet (HFD). Adult male Wistar rats were fed HFD or standard diet (controls) for 1 month; a group of animals from each condition were gavaged with 35% (vol/vol) ethanol every 12 h for the last 3 days of the experiment. Total lipid content determined in liver showed lipid accumulation after HFD or HFD combined with ethanol. HFD alone induced a significant rise of seric alanine aminotransferase levels and a marked reduction of antioxidant enzyme activities (catalase, superoxide dismutase, glutathione transferase). Ethanol alone caused a significant rise of seric cholesterol levels and enhanced mitochondrial H₂O₂ production, but without apparent oxidative stress as evaluated by thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) assay. The combination of HFD and acute ethanol caused an increase of TBARS, indicating lipid peroxidation, most likely as a consequence of a decrease in antioxidant defenses induced by HFD and of an increase in reactive oxygen species production induced by ethanol. Principal component analysis, based on all the measured parameters, that is, serum liver function tests, antioxidant enzyme activities, mitochondrial H₂O₂ release, and TBARS, indicated that HFD and ethanol act as two independent factors. In conclusion, our results show that HFD or acute ethanol alone produce, at the most, mild liver injury, whereas their combination triggers oxidative stress, possibly inducing a progression toward liver disease. Hence, our data indicate that a diet too rich in fat is a serious risk factor for the occurrence of liver injury deriving from acute ethanol consumption.