Vol.:(0123456789) 1 3 Molecular Biology Reports https://doi.org/10.1007/s11033-018-4408-0 ORIGINAL ARTICLE Post-exposure distribution of selenium and aluminum ions and their efects on superoxide dismutase activity in mouse brain Ilona Sadauskiene 1,2,4  · Arunas Liekis 1  · Inga Staneviciene 2  · Dale Viezeliene 2  · Gediminas Zekonis 3  · Vaida Simakauskiene 1  · Dale Baranauskiene 1,2  · Rima Naginiene 1 Received: 25 June 2018 / Accepted: 26 September 2018 © Springer Nature B.V. 2018 Abstract The study was conducted to determine how aluminum (Al) and selenium (Se) ions alone and in combination afect super- oxide dismutase (SOD) activity and to evaluate the distribution of these elements in the blood and the brain of laboratory mice. SOD activity in mouse brain was evaluated after single-time (within 24 h) and repeated (over 14 days) intraperitoneal (IP) injections of SeO 3 2− , Al 3+ , and (SeO 3 2− +Al 3+ ) solutions. The control mice received IP injections of the same volume of saline. Aluminum concentration in mouse blood increased both after single-time and repeated injections of AlCl 3 and the combined (AlCl 3 + Na 2 SeO 3 ) solutions. The concentration of Se increased in blood after single-time and repeated injections of Na 2 SeO 3 and the combined (AlCl 3 + Na 2 SeO 3 ) solutions. After the single-time injection of the experimental solutions, the concentrations of both Al and Se in mouse brain remained at baseline, but after repeated injections of (AlCl 3 + Na 2 SeO 3 ) solutions increased aluminum concentration. A single IP injection of Al did not change SOD activity in mouse brain, while a single injection of Se or the Se + Al mixture decreased it. After 14 days, IP injections of Al or Se alone did not afect SOD activity, while their combination decreased it. Our results showed that Se ions decreased SOD activity in mouse brain after both single-time and repeated IP injections of selenium-containing solutions. The study failed to show a direct or linear efect of increased Al or Se concentrations on SOD activity in mouse brain. Keywords Superoxide dismutase · Mouse · Selenium · Aluminum Introduction The occurrence of oxidative stress in the body, the mecha- nisms of its development, its consequences for the body, and the methods of its elimination and (or) prevention are among the most relevant questions discussed and analyzed in medicine and other felds of science. Oxidative stress is usually thought to refect an imbalance between the forma- tion of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and the ability of the * Ilona Sadauskiene Ilona.Sadauskiene@lsmuni.lt Arunas Liekis Arunas.Liekis@lsmuni.lt Inga Staneviciene Inga.Staneviciene@lsmuni.lt Dale Viezeliene Dale.Viezeliene@lsmuni.lt Gediminas Zekonis Gediminas.Zekonis@lsmuni.lt Vaida Simakauskiene Vaida.Simakauskiene@lsmuni.lt Dale Baranauskiene Dale.Baranauskiene@lsmuni.lt Rima Naginiene Rima.Naginiene@lsmuni.lt 1 Neuroscience Institute, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania 2 Department of Biochemistry, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania 3 Department of Prosthodontics, Medical Academy, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Kaunas, Lithuania 4 Laboratory of Molecular Neurobiology of the Neuroscience Institute, Lithuanian University of Health Sciences, Eiveniu St. 4-213, 50161 Kaunas, Lithuania