Effect of vitamin e supplementation on the increase of neutrophil-mediated oxidative burst in elderly

Background: Aging process decreases function of neutrophils as effector cells in the first-line defense of the body, including their oxidative burst activity. The oxidative burst is related to the production of ROS in neutrophils through the NADPH oxidase enzyme system that generally occurs via arachidonic acid pathway. In this pathway, Vitamin E plays a role as a stimulator of phospholipase A2 activation to increase of superoxide production in cells. We evaluated the effect of vitamin E supplementation on the increase of neutrophil-mediated oxidative burst in elderly. Methods: The study design was a randomized controlled trial and single-blind with pre-and pos-test control group. 28 elderly who met the inclusion but not exclusion criteria were enrolled. Oxidative burst was measured before and after the vitamin E or a placebo treatment for 7 days. PMA (Post Menstrual Age) as the stimulant of oxidative burst used was used and its functions were measured using flowcytometry. The difference between neutrophils-oxidative burst between pre and post-treatment was analyzed using Wilcoxon Signed Rank. Results: Most of the subjects were female, mean age 73 years old with the number of leucocytes and neutrophils within normal limits. The mean oxidative burst before the vitamin E and the placebo treatment were 76.64 ± 3.98 % and 80.32 ± 12.08 % (N 98-100 %), respectively. Oxidative burst after vitamin E and placebo treatment were 87.79 ± 11.25 % and 81.92 ± 18.21 %, respectively. There was significant difference between neutrophils-mediated oxidative burst and vitamin E (p = 0.011), but not significant in placebo group (p = 0.594), with mean difference is higher in vitamin E (11.15 ± 1.49 %) compared to placebo (1.60 ± 1.94). Conclusion: There was an increase ofneutrophils-mediated oxidative burst in the elderly after vitamin E intake for seven days.