Evaluation of oxidative stress biomarkers of rabbits' liver exposed to thermooxidized virgin olive oil obtained from blanquette olive cultivars

Objective: This work aimed to study the effect of temperature in variation of fatty acid profiles of virgin olive oil (VOO) and to evaluate the impact of the consumption of this thermo oxidized VOO on metabolic oxidative stress.Materials and methods: Effect of consumption of fresh or thermo-oxidized VOO on rabbits was studied. The animals were distributed in groups of six rabbits each and were fed for four weeks with the incorporation of 15% VOO either fresh or heated during one, two, three or four hours. The liver was examined for the level of reduced glutathione (GSH), glutathione S-transferase (GST), catalase (CAT) and activity malondialdehyde (MDA).Results: The diet of VOO heated for three and four hours resulted in a significant increase (p<0.01) in liver of MDA and GST compared to the control group. The results also showed a significant decrease in GSH levels and CAT activity induced in rabbits of the group treated with VOO heated for three and four hours.Conclusions: The consumption of thermo-oxidized VOO is more dangerous to health than the consumption of fresh olive oil or low oxidation value VOO.