The effects of quercetin towards reactive oxygen species levels and glutathione in Toxoplasma gondii profilin-exposed adipocytes in vitro

Abstract

Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) has been found to potentially cause adipocyte dysfunction by activating the inflammatory pathways through its profilin. In response to inflammation, adipocytes produce Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS). To scavenge ROS, endogenous or exogenous antioxidants are required. Glutathione (GSH) is one of enzimatic antioxidant that abundant in all of body cells. Quercetin, an exogenous antioxidant, can be widely found in natural products. This research aims to explore the effects of quercetin towards ROS and GSH stimulated from T. gondii profilin-exposed adipocytes. To achieve this, adipocytes were exposed to 20 µM T. gondii profilin and treated with four doses of quercetin; 31.25, 62.5, 125, and 250 µM. The results showed that quercetin significantly reduced the ROS levels (p <0,001) and significantly increased GSH (p <0,001) in T. gondii profilin-exposed adipocytes compared to untreated cells, with an effective dose of 62.5µM. This study implies that quercetin might be a promising candidate for development of antioxidant treatment interventions to prevent toxoplasmosis-mediated adipocytopathy.

Keywords

• obesity
• Toxoplasma gondii profilin
• ROS
• GSH
• quercetin