Investigating the effects of Momordica charantia on experimental ischemia - reperfusion injury in rat ovary

Aim: The aim of this thesis is to investigate the effect of Momordica charantia (MC) extract against damage in the experimental rat ovarian torsion-detorsion model. Materials and Methods: Forty-eight Sprague Dawley female rats were divided into 6 groups. No treatment was applied to the sham group. In ischemia-reperfusion (IR) group, 3 hours of ischemia/3 hours of reperfusion was conducted. Before and/or after IR, 600 mg/kg momordica charantia (MC) were introduced to rats via orogastric tube. At the end of the experiment, total serum antioxidant/oxidant status (TAS/TOS) and Anti-Mullerian Hormone (AMH) level were measured. Ovarian histopathologies, APAF-1 immune activity and Western Blot (WB) results were analyzed. Results: TAS and AMH levels were the lowest while TOS level and OSI were the highest in the IR group. TAS and AMH levels were higher, and TOS levels and OSI were lower in groups treated with MC extract compared to IR group. Normal ovarian histology was observed in sham and MC groups, while follicular degeneration, granulosa and stromal cell degeneration, mononuclear cell infiltration and vascular congestion and dilatation were observed in IR group. Ovarian histopathology was improved in groups that received MC extract. APAF-1 immune activity was intense in IR and MC+IR groups while dramatically decreased in the groups treated with MC extract after IRI. In WB results, MC treatment reduced APAF-1 protein level after IRI. Conclusion: MC extract restored negative biochemical and histochemical changes caused by ovarian IRI due to its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties and supported cell survival by suppressing APAF-1 expression.