Protective effects of lysozyme chloride and reduced glutathione on betel quid chewing-produced gastric oxidative stress and haemorrhagic ulcer in rats.

The pathogenic mechanisms underlying betel quid chewing (BQC)-induced gastric haemorrhagic ulcer are totally unknown. This study first demonstrated that BQC produced gastric haemorrhagic ulcer via oxidative stress that could be protected by lysozyme chloride and glutathione in rats. Male Wistar rats were fed with regular pellet food or BQC-containing diets. After 1-90 days rats were deprived of food for 24 h. Rat stomachs were irrigated for 3 h with normal saline or simulated gastric juice. Rats were killed and gastric specimens were harvested. A BQC-feeding period-dependent exacerbation of gastric parameters, such as enhanced acid back-diffusion, mucosal lipid peroxide generation, as well as related decreased glutathione levels and mucus content, were observed. Gastric juice caused a further aggravation of these ulcerogenic parameters. Daily intragastric lysozyme chloride or glutathione dose-dependently inhibited exacerbation of various ulcerogenic parameters in those BQC-fed rats. In conclusion, BQC can produce gastric haemorrhagic ulcer in rats via oxidative stress that could be ameliorated by lysozyme chloride and glutathione.