The effect of dietary vitamin c on ozone‐induced oxidative changes in guinea pig erythrocytes

Abstract

The present study evaluated the effects of a single three hour ozone exposure on erythrocyte parameters of male Dawkin‐Hartley guinea pigs that were reared on diets high or low in vitamin C for 11 days prior to the ozone exposure. The results indicated that consumption of diets highly different in vitamin C levels did not have a significant effect on ozone induced alterations in erythrocyte parameters although there was a trend toward higher methemoglobin values in the ozone treated guinea pigs reared on the low vitamin C diets as compared to similarly exposed animals given the high vitamin C diet.

While ambient ozone (O₃) is primarily recognized as a potent respiratory irritant, it is now known that O₃ may exert an array of systemic effects including altered liver function,^1,2 induction of chromosomal aberrations,^3,5 and changes in red cell metabolism.^6,7 since O₃ is an environmental oxidant, investigators^8–11 have assessed the capacity of the dietary antioxidant vitamin E to reduce O₃ toxicity. Winterbourn¹² has suggested that ascorbic acid may also be able to reduce the extent of oxidant induced cellular alterations with particular reference to erythrocytes. Since O₃ is known to induce a variety of red cell changes indicative of oxidant stress,^6,7 this study was designed to evaluate whether markedly different levels of dietary ascorbic acid ingestion could affect such red cell changes.

Key words:

• Ascorbic acid
• ozone
• erythrocyte
• animal model
• guinea pig
• air pollution