Caramel dye IV increases hepatic and renal oxidative stress injuries

Caramel dye IV (C-IV) is a synthetic organic product, does not present nutritional, ergogenic, or technological factors, but leads to reactive oxygen species (ROS). This way may lead to damage to a wide range of molecules, leading to cancer, cardiovascular, and neurodegenerative diseases development. We aimed to verify the effects of different doses of C-IV dye on the markers of oxidative stress in the liver and kidneys from male Swiss CF-1 mice, divided into four experimental groups: control; C-IV 0.3 g/kg; C-IV 1 g/kg and C-IV 3 g/kg. We found that mainly 3 g/Kg of C-IV dye promote oxidative damage in liver and kidney homogenates, evidenced by the increase of lipid peroxidation, reduction of free SH groups, and higher ROS production. As a consequence, increased superoxide dismutase, catalase, and acetylcholinesterase enzyme activities were detected, as a response to the increased oxidative stress production. These damages were confirmed through histology images. Since the mice dose used in this study is 30-fold lower than the human daily dose consumption, these results indicate that the daily doses might induce substantial oxidative stress damages and possibly lead to chronic disease development.