Effects of pelargonium sidoides extract on biochemical and antioxidant parameters in rats with experimental polycystic ovary syndrome

EFFECTS OF PELARGONIUM SIDOIDES EXTRACT ON SOME BIOCHEMICAL AND ANTIOXIDANT PARAMETERS IN RATS WITH EXPERIMENTAL POLYCYSTIC OVARIAN SYNDROME (PCOS) The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential therapeutic effects of pelargonium sidoides extract on oxidative stress in rats with experimentally induced polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). PCOS is a common hormonal disorder in women and is characterized by the presence of numerous small cyst-like formations (follicles) in the ovaries and irregular or absent ovulation. Pelargonium sidoides is a plant species with anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antiviral, and antioxidant properties and is widely used in many diseases. Thirty-five 2.5-month-old female Sprague Dawley rats were used in the study. The rats were divided into five groups. The first group received no treatment. The second group received carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC) (1%, 1 ml). The third group received Pelargonium sidoides extract at a dose of 30 mg/kg/day body weight via gavage for 3 days. To group 4, 1 mg/kg/day letrozole (PCOS agent) dissolved in 1% CMC was administered via gavage for 21 days. To group 5, letrozole and pelargonium sidoides extract were administered together. In group 5, pelargonium sidoides extract administration started on the 19th day of letrozole administration and was administered for 3 days. To this group, pelargonium sidoides extract was administered on the last 3 days of letrozole administration (on days 19, 20 and 21). In the study, changes in antioxidant parameters such as malondialdehyde (MDA), reduced glutathione (GSH), catalase (KAT), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px), glutathione-S-transferase (GST) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in blood and ovarian tissues and changes in serum luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), testosterone, glucose, insulin and cholesterol levels, which are important laboratory findings in PCOS, were investigated in the autoanalyzer. At the end of the study, MDA levels were found to be higher in plasma and ovarian tissues (p<0.05 and p<0.001, respectively) in the PCOS group compared to the control group, while GSH (p<0.05 and p<0.001) levels and CAT (p<0.001), GSH-Px (p<0.001), GST (p<0.001) and SOD (p<0.05 and p<0.001) activities were found to be lower. When the PCOS+pelargonium sidoides group was compared to the PCOS group, no difference was found in terms of GSH levels in the blood (p>0.05), while an increase (p<0.001) was observed in the ovary. A statistically significant decrease was observed in MDA levels in both tissues (p<0.05 and p<0.001, respectively). An increase in CAT (p<0.05), GSH-Px (p<0.001), GST (p<0.05) and SOD (p<0.05 and p<0.001) activities was detected in both blood and ovarian tissues. No statistically significant difference was found between the control, pelargonium sidoides and CMC groups in terms of CAT, GSH, GSH-Px and SOD in blood and ovarian tissue. Compared with the control group, no differences were observed in the blood tissue of the PCOS+pelargonium sidoides group except for MDA levels and CAT activities and GSH-Px activity in ovarian tissue. Compared with the control group, serum LH (p<0.001), testosterone (p<0.001), insulin (p<0.001) and cholesterol (p<0.05) levels were higher in the PCOS group, while FSH levels were lower. No statistically significant difference was found in glucose levels (p>0.05). Compared with the control group, in the PCOS+Pelargonium sidoides group, LH, testosterone, glucose, insulin, and cholesterol levels, except serum testosterone levels, approached the control group means, and no statistically significant differences were observed. Compared with the PCOS group, serum LH (p<0.05), testosterone (p<0.05), and insulin (p<0.05) levels were lower, while FSH (p<0.001) levels were higher. No statistically significant difference was found in glucose levels (p>0.05). The results of the study concluded that PCOS may cause oxidative stress in the blood and ovarian tissues, may cause significant changes in LH, FSH, testosterone, insulin and cholesterol levels, which are important biomarkers in the evaluation of PCOS, and that the Pelargonium sidoides extract, whose antioxidant properties we evaluated, may h