Antioxidant Status and Lipid Peroxidation End Products in Patients of Type 1 Diabetes Mellitus
Thavatchai Peerapatdit MD*, Atip Likidlilid MSc**, Natchai Patchanans MSc**, Anchaleekorn Somkasetrin MSc**
Affiliation : * Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University, ** Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine Siriraj Hospital, Mahidol University
Background and Objective : In Type 1 diabetes mellitus (DM), hyperglycemia is considered a primary cause of
diabetic vascular complications and is associated with oxidative stress. The role of antioxidants, particularly
α tocopherol, in Type 1 DM and its contribution in the development of vascular complications is not clear.
Therefore, the present study aims to investigate the relationship between antioxidant status (α tocopherol) and
lipid peroxidation end products (malondialdehyde; MDA) in the plasma of 20 Type 1 DM and 20 nondiabetic
healthy control subjects.
Materials and Methods : Lipid levels in all subjects were analyzed spectrophotometrically by enzymatic reagent
kits. Plasma MDA was assessed by spectrofluorometry, whereas plasma α tocopherol was estimated by high
performance liquid chromatography in Type 1 DM as well as in the control subjects of matched sex and ages.
The results of Type 1 DM were compared with a control group using unpaired Student’s t-test. The correlations
between fasting plasma glucose and other laboratory parameters were assessed by Pearson rank correlation
coefficient.
Results : The plasma MDA concentration was significantly higher in Type 1 diabetic patients as compared to
controls, (p < 0.01). A significantly reduced plasma antioxidant status of Type 1 DM patients was found only
in α tocopherol / total lipid as compared to controls (p < 0.05). However, no significant difference was ob-
served in plasma α tocopherol and α tocopherol / total cholesterol (p > 0.05) as compared to the control
subjects. The positive correlation between MDA and FPG was demonstrated in Type 1 diabetic compared with
normal subjects.
Conclusion : We conclude that antioxidant supplementation may be necessary for treatment to reduce oxida-
tive stress for diabetic complication protection in Type 1 DM.
Keywords : Lipid peroxidation, Antioxidant, Atherosclerosis, Oxidative stress, Type 1 diabetes
