Anthocyanins protect against oxidative damage in cell cultures

The biological effect of six different anthocyanins contained in berry fruits - delphinidin (DP) cyanidin (CY), and their glycosilated and rutinosinated derivatives, i.e. delphinidin-3-glucoside, delphinidin-3-rutinoside, cyanidin-3-glucoside, and delphinidin-3-rutinoside - was evaluated in cell cultures of smooth muscle cells and rat hepatoma cells. Cells were treated with the oxidative stressor tert-butyl-hydroperoxide (TBHP), able to induce lipid peroxidation, redox state alterations, cell death, and DNA damage, with or withouth different anthocyanins. The results indicate that the anthocyanins are effective in reducing lipid peroxidation, in protecting cells from redox state alterations and cell death. CY and DP were the most effective molecules. Finally, CY was the most active molecule in protecting against DNA damage, in a human fibroblast cell line, as measured by the cytofluorimetrical analysis of the Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen (PCNA), a protein involved in DNA repair. In conclusion, our results demonstrate that all the anthocyanins tested protect against oxidative damage, but the sugar moiety seems to slightly reduce their efficacy.