N-Acetylcysteine Improves Acrylamide-Induced Changes in Ovarian Tissue and Serum Levels of Pituitary-Ovarian Axis Hormones in Adult Rats

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate the protective effect of N-acetylcystein (NAC) on ovarian tissue andserum levels of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LH), estradiol, and progesterone in Acrylamide (AA)-treated adult rats.Materials and Methods: Forty-two adult female Wistar rats were randomly assigned into 7 groups of 6 including: a controlgroup without treatment, a placebo group received distilled water intraperitoneally, an AA group received 50 mg/kg by oralgavage, a NAC group received 40 mg/kg intraperitoneally, an AA+NAC10, AA+NAC20 and an AA+NAC40 groups received10, 20 and 40 mg/kg of NAC intraperitoneally, respectively and then also received 50 mg/kg AA by oral gavage for 28 days.Serum levels of FSH, LH, estradiol and progesterone were measured by radioimmunoassay method and ovarian tissue wasevaluated histopathologically.Results: Administrating AA alone decreased the number of ovarian follicles, corpus luteum and the levels of FSH, estradioland progesterone, while increased the number of atretic follicles and LH level compared to the control, placebo and NACgroups (p0.05). Following AA+NAC20 and AA+NAC40 administrationand not AA+NAC10, the number of ovarian follicles, corpus luteum and also the levels of FSH, estradiol and progesteroneincreased, while the number of atretic follicles and LH level decreased (p