ABSTRACT
Oxidative stress is implicated in the pathophysiology of a number of chronic diseases including atherosclerosis, diabetes, cataract and accelerated ageing. Aim: to elucidate the protective role of vitamin E and C supplementation on pancreas using histological and imrnunohistological assessments when oxidative stress is induced by carbon tetrachloride [CCI4] administration, using the rat as a model. 15 adult male albino rats were divided into 3 groups 5 animals each, control group [I], CCI4 treated group [II] with intraperitoneal injections of CCI4 [2 ml/kg] twice weekly for three weeks, CCI4 + vitamin E + vitamin C treated group [III] were treated as in group II but also received vitamin E [500 mg/ kg] and vitamin C [100 mg/kg] orally. AH rats were sacrificed at the 4th week from the start of the experiment. Pancreatic samples from each rat were immediately fixed in 10% formalin, paraffin-embedded, and stained with hematoxylin and eosin, silver reticulin, Mallory's trichrome and a-smooth muscle actin immuno-histochemical stain. CCI4 treated rats showed more acinar degeneration, pancreatic fibrosis and activated pancreatic stellate cells in comparison to the control group. Oral administration of vitamin E and C greatly reduced pancreatic fibrosis and acinar degeneration. It is concluded from this study that vitamin E and C supplementation was protective to the pancreas from a prooxidant challenge such as CCI4