There is interest in the postulate that cyclosporine a (CsA) contributes to the elevated homocysteine levels seen in organ transplant recipients, as hyperhomocysteinemia is now considered an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD) and may partially explain the increased prevalence of CVD in this population. The main purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of CsA administration on plasma homocysteine. Eighteen female Sprague Dawley rats (4 months old) were randomly assigned to either a treatment or a control group. For 18 days the treatment group received of CsA (25 mg/kg/d) while the control group received the same volume of the vehicle. Blood samples obtained following sacrifice to measure CsA, total homocysteine, and plasma creatinine. There were no significant differences in plasma homocysteine (mean values +/- SD: treatment = 4.79 +/- 0.63 micromol/L, control = 4.46 +/- 0.75 micromol/L; P = .37). Homocysteine was not significantly correlated with final CsA concentrations (r = .17; P = .69). There was a significant difference in plasma creatinine values between the two groups (treatment = 60.44 +/- 7.68 micromol/L, control = 46.33 +/- 1.66 micromol/L; P < .001). Furthermore, plasma homocysteine and creatinine were positively correlated with the treatment group (r = .73; P < .05) but not the controls (r = -.10; P = .81). In conclusion, CsA does not influence plasma homocysteine concentrations in rats.

Item Type:	Refereed Article
Research Division:	Biomedical and Clinical Sciences
Research Group:	Clinical sciences
Research Field:	Nephrology and urology
Objective Division:	Health
Objective Group:	Clinical health
Objective Field:	Clinical health not elsewhere classified
UTAS Author:	Fassett, RG (Professor Robert Fassett)
UTAS Author:	Booth, C (Dr Christine Booth)
UTAS Author:	Coombes, JS (Dr Jeff Coombes)
ID Code:	70895
Year Published:	2005
Web of Science® Times Cited:	1
Deposited By:	Health Sciences A
Deposited On:	2011-07-05
Last Modified:	2011-07-05
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