ABSTRACT
Background: Bisphenol A [BPA], an environmental pollutant, can generate free radicals which damages the reproductive system. Vitamin C is an antioxidant which may prevent the adverse effects of free radicals
Objective: The aim was to investigate the effect of vitamin C on the ovary tissue in rats treated with BPA
Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 24 female Wistar rats [200+/-20 gr] were randomly divided into 4 groups [n=6]: control, BPA [60 microg/Kg/day], vitamin C [150 mg/Kg/day] and BPA + vitamin C and orally treated for 20 days. The left ovaries were taken out, fixed for tissue processing and studied using stereological methods. Data were analyzed with SPSS using one-way ANOVA, and the means were considered significantly different at [p<0.05]
Results: The total volume of ovary and cortex [p<0.01], medulla [p<0.05], the volume of corpus luteum [p<0.001] and the mean number of antral follicles [p<0.001] significantly reduced in BPA group compared with control, while the number of atretic follicles increased [p<0.05]. The volume of oocyte [p<0.01] and its nucleus [p<0.001] in the antral follicles and the thickness of zona pellucida [ZP] in the secondary [p<0.05] and antral [p<0.001] follicles significantly decreased in BPA group compared with controls. The above parameters in the BPA + vitamin C group were compensated to control level
Conclusion: Vitamin C can be used as a potential antioxidant in the case of BPA toxication