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This paper aims to study the effect of green lemon zest combined with sardine proteins in diabetic hypertensive rats (DHRs).

Male Wistar rats (n = 30) weighing 250 ± 10 g were divided into five groups. The first group consumed a diet containing 20 per cent casein (C). The other four groups are rendered diabetic by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (40 mg/kg body weight), then hypertensive by subcutaneous implantation controlled time-release pellet containing ouabain (0.25 mg/pellet). One untreated group (DHR) consumed 20 per cent casein and the three other groups consumed the same diet supplemented with 2 per cent green lemon zest (DHR-lz), or with 20 per cent of sardine protein (group DHR-sp) or with the combination of both sardine proteins and green lemon zest (group DHR-sp + lz).

DHRs feeding on the combination of both sardine protein (sp) and lemon zest (lz) induced a significant decrease of diastolic blood pressure and heart rates values compared with DHR (p < 0.05). The HDLC values were increased by +55 per cent in DHR-sp + lz compared with DHR group. Moreover, plasma non-HDLC concentrations were decreased significantly compared to DHR, DHR-lz, DHR-sp and C groups. In DHR-sp + lzvs DHR group, TBARS values were decreased by −25 per cent in the liver. Moreover, kidney TBARS were significantly reduced by −66, −51, −65 and −67 per cent compared with C, DHR, DHR-lz and DHR-sp, respectively.

These results suggest that consumption of green lemon zest combined with sardine proteins can reduce blood pressure and tissue oxidative damage and, therefore, help to prevent cardiovascular complications in hypertensive diabetic patients.

This study aims to investigate the possible effect of Citrus latifolia (CL) extract on biomarkers of oxidative stress, including lipid peroxidation products in rats fed a high cholesterol diet

Hypercholesterolemia was induced by feeding normocholesterolemic rats 1 per cent cholesterol-enriched diet for 15 days. An experimental group (n = 20) was divided into two groups (n = 10) and fed the same diet with or without CL lyophilized aqueous extract (1 per cent) for four weeks. At day 28, ten rats from each group were killed.

Treatment with CL lyophilized aqueous extract compared with the untreated group had decreased plasma total cholesterol (TC) (−36 per cent), triacylglycerols (−48 per cent), isoprostanes values (−74 per cent) and reduced thiobarbituric acid reactive substances in erythrocytes (−21 per cent). However, the supplementation of CL peels in the hypercholesterolemic diet enhanced superoxide dismutase (+69 per cent), glutathione reductase (+30 per cent) and catalase activities (+34 per cent).

In hypercholesterolemic rats, administering CL extract ameliorates dyslipidemia and attenuates lipid peroxidation in tissues. These results suggest that CL could be beneficial in the primary treatment of hypercholesterolemia and oxidative damage caused by a high-cholesterol diet.