modulation of ethanol-induced organ damage by azilsartan: evidence from biochemical and molecular docking approaches

Background: local effects of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system have received pronounced attention due to their involvement in various physiological activities. the current study aimed to assess the protective effects of two distinct doses of azilsartan on cardiac and hepatic tissues of rats challenged with ethanol. methods: thirty-two male wistar rats were allocated into four groups, negative and positive control, and low and high doses of azilsartan groups. except for the negative control, all groups received ethanol on day 14 of the treatment. after euthanizing the animals; blood samples were sent for measuring liver enzymes, lipid profiles, hematological markers, c-reactive protein (crp), tnf-α, malondialdehyde (mda), and total antioxidant capacity (taoc). the cardiac indices were also calculated. additionally, an in-silico molecular docking study was performed. results: the high dose of azilsartan demonstrated the capability to reduce the aminotransferase, alanine transaminase, tnf-α, crp, and mda levels and elevate the level of taoc. the low dose of azilsartan decreased the plasma's atherogenic index. in silico molecular docking demonstrated that azilsartan exhibited superior inhibitory activity against six proteins, with affinity values (-9.5 to -8.1 kcal/mol).conclusion: the cardioprotective and hepatoprotective effects of azilsartan could be attributed to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties, as demonstrated through both in vivo and in silico studies.