Assessment of mexican arnica (Heterotheca inuloides Cass) and rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis) extracts on dopamine and selected biomarkers of oxidative stress in stomach and brain of Salmonella typhimurium infected rats

Background: The effects of some natural products on dopamine (DA) and 5-hydroxyindole acetic acid (5-HIAA) in brain of infected models are still unclear. Objective: The purpose of this study was to measure the effect of Mexican arnica/rosemary (MAR) water extract and oseltamivir on both biogenic amines and some oxidative biomarkers in the brain and stomach of young rats under infection condition. Methods: Female Wistar rats (weight 80 g) in the presence of MAR or absence (no-MAR) were treated as follows: group 1, buffer solution (controls); oseltamivir (100 mg/kg), group 2; culture of Salmonella typhimurium (S. Typh) (1 × 106 colony-forming units/ rat) group 3; oseltamivir (100 mg/kg) + S. Typh (same dose) group 4. Drug and extracts were administered intraperitoneally every 24 h for 5 days, and S.Typh was given orally on days 1 and 3. On the fifth day, blood was collected to measure glucose and hemoglobin. The brains and stomachs were obtained to measure levels of DA, 5-HIAA, glutathione (GSH), TBARS, H₂ O₂ , and total ATPase activity using validated methods. Results: DA levels increased in MAR group treated with oseltamivir alone but decreased in no-MAR group treated with oseltamivir plus S. Typh. 5-HIAA, GSH, and H₂ O₂ decreased in this last group, and ATPase activity increased in MAR group treated with oseltamivir plus S. Typh. TBARS (lipid peroxidation) increased in MAR group that received oseltamivir alone. Most of the biomarkers were not altered significantly in the stomach. Conclusion: MAR extract alters DA and metabolism of 5-HIAA in the brain of young animals infected. Antioxidant capacity may be involved in these effects.