Stereological investigation of the effects of ginseng use on the liver in adult malerats

This study aimed to calculate the toxic effect of Panax ginseng plant on Kupffer cells, a macrophage cell group known for its phagocytosis property in the liver, and the change in the number of Kupffer cells together with the total liver volume using a number of stereological methods. In the study, 30 healthy adult Wistar Albino male rats, 3 months old and weighing an average of 300 g, were used. Control, normal dose (600 mg/kg/day) and toxic dose (1800 mg/kg/day) groups were formed, with 10 animals in each group, and weights were monitored five times in total before starting the experiment and at 15-day intervals. While no application was made to the control group, ginseng extract was applied to the experimental groups via gavage at the above-mentioned doses at the same time every day for two months. All animals in the control, normal and toxic dose groups were anesthetized with 50 mg/kg ketamine and perfusion was applied. Liver tissues of all rats were removed and embedded in paraffin after the necessary follow-ups for stereological examinations were performed. Parallel and serial tissue sections of 5 μm thickness and 1/200 ratio were obtained from paraffin-embedded blocks. The first tissue sections were placed on the first slide, and the tissue sections taken after counting 200 steps were placed on the second and third slides, resulting in a total of six slides for each animal. Photographs were taken using a light microscope from sections stained with Hematoxylin-Eosin. Liver tissue volume value and Kupffer cell numbers were calculated using the Cavalieri method. While the average weights of the groups at the beginning of the experiment were 217.2 g, 227.6 g and 214.4 g in the control, normal dose and toxic dose groups, respectively, they were 321.5 g, 288.8 g and 290.7 g at the end of the experiment. The percentage change in the first and last measurements within the groups was calculated as 48.02%, 26.89% and 35.59%, respectively, and it was observed that the ginseng-administered groups gained less weight compared to the control group. The volume means in the control, normal and toxic dose groups were calculated as 10.571 cm3, 12.073 cm3 and 11.642 cm3, respectively. The mean number of Kupffer cells in the whole liver tissue was obtained as 754810.9, 799108.1 and 647949.7 in the control, normal dose and toxic dose groups, respectively.