Protective Effect of Magnesium Sulfate against Experimental Models of Gastric Ulcer in NMRI Mice

Gastric ulcers are common digestive disorders involving stomach mucosal lesions with worldwide prevalence. There are different reasons for peptic ulcers. One common reason among west societies is ethanol consumption. The aim of the present study is pretreatment by magnesium sulfate. In this study 66 male NMRI mice were randomly divided into 11 groups and the administered mice were followed up daily for 15 days. These groups include control group (intact), control ulcer group (ethanol 10 mg/kg), standard group (omeprazole 40 mg/kg and ethanol), experimental groups (magnesium sulfate 50, 100, 200, 300 mg/kg), and experimental ulcer groups (magnesium sulfate 50, 100, 200, 300 mg/kg and ethanol). At the end of the relevant period, the levels of oxidative stress parameters were biochemically evaluated. The results of this study revealed that the activity of catalase, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase in control ulcer group significantly decreased compared to the control group. Oral administration of magnesium sulfate produced no significant effect on catalase, glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities in intact animals. Animals in experimental ulcer groups represented a great increase in catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase levels over the treatment by magnesium sulfate. Moreover, our results showed that the amount of malondialdehyde in control ulcer group was significantly increased compared to the control group. Pre-treatment with magnesium sulfate caused no significant change on the amount of malondialdehyde in control group, while the level of malondialdehyde was considerably decreased in experimental ulcer groups. Furthermore, our results demonstrated that a pretreatment with MgSO4 could notably reduce oxidative stress and gastric lesions.