Yasmeen Mahar, Alisha Qamar, Lnayat Ullah, Sarwath Fatimee, Mohammad Fawad Saeeduddin, Shire Chaudhry, Sahal Salman.
Ameliorating Effect of L-arginine and Insulin on Streptozotocin-induced Adrenal Gland Injury in Albino Rats.
J Saidu Med Col Jan ;11(3):162-8.

Background: Use of dietary supplements to treat illnesses has increased tremendously in recent years. Adrenal gland is one of the most commonly damaged endocrine gland in the body, not only by chemical or radiation injuries, but also as a result of different types of stress. Search is underway for use of natural foods for protection of adrenal gland from different types of insults. Objective: To determine the protective effects of L-arginine on streptozotocin (STZ)-induced adrenal gland injury in albino rats, and to compare its efficacy to insulin. Material and Methods: This prospective experimental study was done at BMSI, JPMC, Karachi. Forty male, healthy albino rats,90-120 days old were segregated into 4 groups. Group A was marked as control, group B was administered STZ, group C and D were treated with STZ along with insulin and L-arginine respectively. At the end of study period, i.e., 6 weeks, animals were sacrificed under ether anaesthesia. Tissue from the left adrenal gland was processed for frozen sectioning to observe fat content of the adrenal cortex by applying Oil Red O stain. Results: Oil Red-0 stained frozen sections revealed closely aggregated fat globules in adrenal cortex of STZ treated group B as compared to control. Moderate betterment was seen in group C and in group D Oil Red O stained frozen sections as compared to STZ treated group B. Conclusion: The results of the study demonstrated adrenal cortex injury by STZ which ameliorated with concomitant use of insulin and L-arginine. The protection was more pronounced with L-arginine as compared to insulin. Keywords: STZ, adrenal gland, insulin, L-arginine

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