Background: High fructose consumption is commonly associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD). However, cardiovascular effects of aromatase inhibitors remain unresolved, although they are effective in the treatment of breast cancer. Thus, this study investigated the effect of letrozole on CVD indicators in Wistar rats exposed to high fructose intake.
Methods: Twenty male rats were randomly placed in four groups (n=5/group): control (distilled water), fructose (10% fructose in drinking water), letrozole (1 mg/kg, p.o) and fructose + letrozole. After 21-day exposure, fasting blood glucose was taken and the rats were sacrificed, while blood and heart were collected and prepared for biochemical analyses.
Results: Our data showed that 10% fructose induced hyperglycaemia and lipid peroxidation. It reduced serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, elevated serum total cholesterol (TC), triglycerides and free fatty acid but did not alter serum low-density lipoprotein cholesterol significantly, when compared with the control. Furthermore, high fructose-intake increased serum or cardiac adenosine deaminase (ADA), xanthine oxidase and uric acid. Our findings revealed that letrozole, when taken with 10% fructose, attenuated all the observed fructose-induced alterations. However, when administered alone, letrozole elevated serum TC as well as cardiac malondialdehyde and ADA.
Conclusion: This study showed that high fructose-intake promoted the risk of CVDs in rats, while administration of letrozole attenuated fructose effects. Hence, Letrozole may serve as a potential adjuvant therapy for attenuating CVD risk. However, further pre-clinical and clinical findings are necessary to thoroughly investigate the cardiometabolic effects of letrozole.