Cardioprotective effects of rutin via alteration in TNF-α, CRP, and BNP levels coupled with antioxidant effect in STZ-induced diabetic rats

Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a dreadful complication of diabetes responsible for 80 % mortality in diabetic patients, but unfortunately its pharmacotherapy is still incomplete. Rutin is a naturally occurring flavonoid having a long history of use in nutritional supplements for its action against oxidative stress, inflammation, and hyperglycemia, the key players involved in the progression of DCM, but remains unexplored for its role in DCM. This study was conducted to address this lacuna. It was performed in 4-week-old Streptozotocin-induced (45 mg/kg) diabetic rats for a period of 24 weeks to mimic the cardiotoxic effect of chronic hyperglycemia in diabetic patient’s heart and to investigate the effect of rutin (50 mg/kg/day) in ameliorating these effects. Heart of the diabetic rats showed altered ECG parameters, reduced total antioxidant capacity, increased inflammatory assault, and degenerative changes. Interestingly, rutin treatment significantly ameliorated these changes with decrease in blood glucose level (p > 0.001), % HbA1c (p > 0.001) and reduced expression of TNF-α (p < 0.001), CRP (p < 0.001), and BNP (p < 0.01) compared to diabetic control rats. In addition, rutin provided significant protection against diabetes associated oxidative stress (p < 0.05), prevented degenerative changes in heart, and improved ECG parameters compared to diabetic control rats. The heart-to-body weight ratio was significantly reduced in rutin treatment group compared to diabetic control rats (p < 0.001). In conclusion, this study implicates that oxidative stress and inflammation are the central players involved in the progression of DCM and rutin ameliorates DCM through its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory actions on heart.