Iranian Journal of Veterinary Surgery

Iranian Journal of Veterinary Surgery

Effect of N-Acetylcysteine on Acute Hyperglycemia Induced by Urethane in Rats: Role of α2-Adrenergic Receptor

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
Nazanin Zahra Rouzkhosh 1
Esmaeal Tamaddonfard 2
Amir Erfanparast 2
1 PhD candidate, Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran.
2 Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran.
10.30500/ivsa.2025.512508.1440
Abstract
N-acetylcysteine (NAC) is used to treat respiratory, neurodegenerative, and metabolic disorders. In the present study, the effect of NAC was investigated on acute hyperglycemia induced by urethane (URE) in rats. The possible mechanisms including α2-adrenergic receptors and insulin (INS) involvements were explored by intraperitoneal (IP) injection of yohimbine (YOH, an α2-adrenergic receptor antagonist) and determination of serum INS level, respectively. Thirty-five rats were divided into seven groups with equal number to receive IP injections of normal saline (NS), NAC, YOH, and a low dose combination of NAC and YOH before IP injection of URE. Another 20 rats were treated with NS, high doses of NAC, YOH, and their combination without receiving urethane. Time-dependent and percentage alterations in blood glucose level were measured and calculated, respectively. Serum INS level was measured with an enzyme-linked immune-sorbent assay (ELISA) kit and expressed as percentage. Time-dependent and percentage alterations of acute hyperglycemia induced by URE were reduced by 25 and 50 mg/kg NAC, 1 mg/kg YOH, and a combination treatment with low doses of NAC (12.5 mg/kg) and YOH (0.25 mg/kg). The urethane alone did not affect INS percentage, but NAC, YOH, and their combination increased it. Conscious rats showed no significant differences in blood glucose and serum INS levels. It is concluded that NAC produced an anti-hyperglycemic effect. This antihyperglycemic action of NAC might be mediated by α2-adrenergic receptors and pancreatic insulin.
Keywords
Alpha-2 adrenergic receptor
Hyperglycemia
Insulin
N-acetylcysteine
Rats

Subjects

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  • Receive Date 15 March 2025
  • Revise Date 14 May 2025
  • Accept Date 16 July 2025
  • First Publish Date 16 July 2025