Chronic Treatment With N-acetylcysteine Improves Cardiac Function but Does Not Prevent Progression of Cardiomyopathy in Syrian Cardiomyopathic Hamsters

Oxidative stress has been postulated to contribute to the onset and development of heart failure (HF). The efficacy of antioxidant therapy in HF, however, remains controversial. This study evaluates the effect of the antioxidant N-acetylcysteine (NAC, 1 g/kg per day) on cardiovascular function in 2- and 6-month-old Bio-TO2 Syrian cardiomyopathic hamsters (SCH) after treatment for 1 month and 5 months with this drug. Endothelial function, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and echocardiographic parameters were evaluated. Age-matched F1-B golden hamsters were used as controls. One month of NAC administration significantly decreased SBP in 2-month-old SCH (n = 5, P < 0.001) without modifying echocardiographic values. Five-month treatment of cardiomyopathic animals with the antioxidant improved the acetylcholine-induced relaxation in aortic rings by 24% (E(Max) value from 45.8% +/- 4% to 55.3% +/- 2% n 7, P <.05) but did not modify EC(50) values for the acetylcholine concentration-response curve. In addition, 5-month administration of NAC to SCH increased ejection fraction from 39% +/- 4% to 57% +/- 4% (n = 11, P <.001) and decreased left ventricular end-diastolic and end-systolic volumes (from 0.38 +/- 0.04 mL/100 g body weight (BW) and 0.22 +/- 0.03 mL/100 g BW, before, to 0.24 +/- 0.04 mL/100 g BW and 0.12 +/- 0.03 mL/100 g BW after treatment, P <.01). Cardiac output index also improved after 5 months of treatment, although it did not reach statistical significance. These results suggest that antioxidant therapy alone decreases ventricular dilatation and improves cardiovascular function in this animal model of dilated cardiomyopathy, but it does not prevent the appearance of HF.