Effect of Oral Intake of Sodium Benzoate on Serum Cholesterol and Proinflammatory Cytokine (Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha [TNF-α] and Interleukin-6 [IL-6]) Levels in the Heart Tissue of Wistar Rats

The in vivo effect of oral administration of varying concentrations (150, 250, 500 mg/kg body wt.) of sodium benzoate (a known preservative in the food, cosmetic and pharmaceutical industry) on serum cholesterol and proinflammatory markers in heart tissue of wistar albino rats were investigated. The oral intake was administered at 24 hour intervals for 7, 14, 21 and 28 days. The groups were labelled; control (group 1), 7days (group 2), 14days (group 3), 21 days (group 4) and 28days (group 5). The rats were fed normal diet ad libitum and blood sample for the determination was taken at the end of the duration. For serum cholesterol, the result obtained for sodium benzoate concentrations administered showed significant (p≤0.05) decrease in cholesterol levels at group 5 for 250 mg/kg body wt. and grp 2, 3, 4 and 5 for 500 mg/kg body wt of experimental rats. The proinflammatory cytokines TNF-α and IL-6 of heart tissue showed significant decrease at grp 4 and 5 for 250 mg/kg body wt and 2, 3, 4 and 5 for 500 mg/kg body wt. values were all compared to control. These findings suggest modulation of the inflammatory pathway due to administration of the preservative.