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Potential vasorelaxant effects of oleanolic acid and erythrodiol, two triterpenoids contained in ‘orujo’ olive oil, on rat aorta

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2007

Rosalía Rodríguez-Rodríguez
Affiliation:
Instituto de la Grasa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Avda Padre García Tejero n. 4, 41012 Sevilla, Spain
María Dolores Herrera
Affiliation:
Departamento de Farmacología, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad de Sevilla, C/Profesor García González n. 2, 41012 Sevilla, Spain
Javier S. Perona
Affiliation:
Instituto de la Grasa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Avda Padre García Tejero n. 4, 41012 Sevilla, Spain
Valentina Ruiz-Gutiérrez*
Affiliation:
Instituto de la Grasa, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, Avda Padre García Tejero n. 4, 41012 Sevilla, Spain
*
*Corresponding author: Dr V. Ruiz-Gutiérrez, fax +34 954616790, email valruiz@cica.es
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Abstract

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‘Orujo’ olive oil is obtained by chemical processes from the waste resulting from the mechanical extraction of virgin olive oil. The aim of the present study was to evaluate a new pharmacological property of two natural triterpenoids contained in olive oil, as vasodilatory agents, and to determine their mechanism of action. The two compounds studied were oleanolic acid and erythrodiol. The vasorelaxant effect induced by these pentacyclic triterpenoids was studied in isolated thoracic rat aorta. Oleanolic acid and erythrodiol, accumulatively added, showed vasorelaxant activities in aortic rings with endothelium pre-contracted by 10−6 M-phenylephrine (maximum percentage of relaxation 86·38 (SEM 2·89) and 73·53 (SEM 6·01), respectively). They had almost no relaxant effect on depolarised or endothelium-denuded aortic segments. The relaxation was significantly attenuated by pre-treatment with the NO synthase inhibitor Nω-nitro-L-arginine-methylester (L-NAME; 3×10−4 m). To characterise the involvement of endothelial factors, in addition to NO, arteries with endothelium were exposed to 10−5 M-indomethacin (INDO), a cyclo-oxygenase inhibitor, or INDO plus L-NAME. INDO did not have any significant effect on the relaxant response of both compounds. The combination of L-NAME plus INDO only abolished the oleanolic acid-induced relaxation. The present results suggest that the mechanism of relaxation seems to be mainly mediated by the endothelial production of NO; however, other mechanisms cannot be excluded. It can be concluded that oleanolic acid and erythrodiol may have interesting therapeutic potential as new vasodilator drugs, thus protecting the cardiovascular system. Therefore, the intake of ‘orujo’ olive oil, as a source of these compounds, might be beneficial in this regard.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © The Nutrition Society 2004

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