Determining gene expression profile of GPX 1 in the liver of diabetic rats treated with capsaicin by real-time PCR.

The purpose of the present study was to determine the Glutathione Peroxidase 1 (GPX 1) gene expression by Real Time PCR in the liver of healthy and diabetic rats treated with capsaicin. Twenty Sprague-Dawley rats were used in our study. Rats were divided into four groups: Group I: diabetic rats (n=5), Group II: capsaicin injected rats (n=5), Group III: Capsaicin injected diabetic rats (n=5), and Group IV: control rats (n=5). Capsaicin injection began 72 h after streptozotocin (STZ) injection. Capsaicin (1 mg/kg) was prepared in 10% ethanol, 1% Tween 20, and 80% sterile water and subcutaneously injected daily in both Groups II and III for two weeks. The results of RT-PCR conducted to determine GPX 1 gene expression indicated that capsaicin treated diabetic rats had higher GPX 1 expression compared to all groups including control (P<0.05). As a result, capsaicin causes an increase in GPX 1 gene expression at transcription level in the diabetic rat liver. Further investigation is needed to determine if such an increase occurs at protein level using various methods such as western-blot analysis.