Dexamethasone (DEX), which is a corticosteroid hormone (glucocorticoid), has been used to treat different conditions, such as immune system disorders, certain skin and eye disorders, as well as breathing problems. Cefotaxime sodium, also called Claforan, is synthesized from a naturally occurring material (semisynthetic). It is a broad-spectrum cephalosporin antibiotic that could be utilized for parenteral administration. The present study aimed to investigate histological changes occurring in the tissues and cells of the rats’ ovary (primordial, primary, secondary, antral, and mature follicle) treated with Cefotaxime sodium, as well as DEX, and evaluate the impacts of these medications on animals’ fertility. In total, 40 female adult Wistar rats were divided into four groups (n=10). The control group received 0.5 ml/kg of distilled water daily for five days as a placebo. The second group was injected with 0.5 mg/kg of DEX daily for five days. The same amount of Claforan (0.5 mg/kg) was injected into the third group daily for five days, and the fourth group received 0.5 mg/kg of both Claforan and DEX daily for five days. Afterward, the ovaries were prepared for histological examination. The ImageJ image analysis system was used to detect morphometric parameters and calculate the area of these organs. The findings of the present study showed that the DEX and Claforan brought changes to the ovarian area and the number of follicles. The ovarian area significantly increased (P<0.007) in the DEX-treated group (mean±SEM=7.3±0.5 mm2), compared to the control group (mean±SEM=4.6±0.20 mm2). However, DEX was found to decrease body weight. Furthermore, the ovarian area significantly increased in the Claforan-treated group (mean±SEM=8.6±0.6 mm2); however, their body weight significantly decreased (P<0.008), in comparison with the control and DEX-treated groups. The combination treatment (i.e., DEX + Cefotaxime sodium) significantly increased (P<0.009) the area of ovaries even more, compared to single treatments (mean±SEM=9.6±0.4 mm2). Overall, both DEX and Claforan brought histological changes to ovaries. However, the effect of DEX on ovaries was less than that of Claforan. The concurrent administration of both medications was found to have more significant effects on rats’ ovaries. |
- Mukherjee S, Sanghamita R, Bhartiya N. Ovarian maldescent: a case report and discussion. Int J Reprod Contracept Obstet Gynecol. 2020;9(5):2164-7.
- Wylie L. Essential Anatomy & Physiology in Maternity Care: Elsevier Health Sciences; 2005.
- Myers M, Britt KL, Wreford NGM, Ebling FJ, Kerr JB. Methods for quantifying follicular numbers within the mouse ovary. Reproduction. 2004;127(5):569-80.
- Anderson R, Themmen A, -Qahtani AA, Groome N, Cameron D. The effects of chemotherapy and long-term gonadotrophin suppression on the ovarian reserve in premenopausal women with breast cancer. Hum Reprod. 2006;21(10):2583-92.
- Rhen T, Cidlowski JA. Antiinflammatory action of glucocorticoids—new mechanisms for old drugs. N Engl J Med. 2005;353(16):1711-23.
- Ploner C, Schmidt S, Presul E, Renner K, Schröcksnadel K, Rainer J, et al. Glucocorticoid-induced apoptosis and glucocorticoid resistance in acute lymphoblastic leukemia. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol. 2005;93(2-5):153-60.
- Gupta B. Role of dexamethasone in peri-operative anesthesia manage-ment: A review of literature. Anesthesiol Open J. 2017;2.
- Grad I, Picard D. The glucocorticoid responses are shaped by molecular chaperones. Mol Cell Endocrinol. 2007;275(1-2):2-12.
- Van Zanten A, Oudijk M, Nohlmans‐Paulssen M, Van der Meer Y, Girbes A, Polderman K. Continuous vs. intermittent cefotaxime administration in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and respiratory tract infections: pharmacokinetics/pharmacodynamics, bacterial susceptibility and clinical efficacy. Br J Clin Pharmacol. 2007;63(1):100-9.
- Fahmy MA, Diab KA. In vivo genotoxicity studies of cefotaxime. Cytologia. 2009;74(4):417-25.
- Rivkin AM. Hepatocellular enzyme elevations in a patient receiving ceftriaxone. Am J Health-Syst Pharm. 2005;62(19):2006-10.
- Peker E, Cagan E, Dogan M. Ceftriaxone-induced toxic hepatitis. World J Gastroenterol. 2009;15(21):2669.
- Eason JM, Dodd SL, Powers SK. Use of Anabolic Steroids to Attenuate the Effects Glucocorticoids on the Rat Diaphragm. Physic Ther. 2003;83(1):29-36.
- Amar M, Shama IA, Enaia A, Hind A, Hager A. Effects of various levels of oral doses dexamethasone (Al-nagma) abused as cosmetic by Sudanese women on Wistar rats. J Med Sci. 2013;13(6):432.
- De Vos P, Saladin R, Auwerx J, Staels B. Induction of ob Gene Expression by Corticosteroids Is Accompanied by Body Weight Loss and Reduced Food Intake (∗).J Biol Chem. 1995;270(27):15958-61.
- Maciel S, Chamberlain C, Wettemann R, Spicer L. Dexamethasone influences endocrine and ovarian function in dairy cattle. J Dairy Sci. 2001;84(9):1998-2009.
- Roy SK, Wang J, Yang P. Dexamethasone inhibits transforming growth factor-β receptor (TβR) messenger RNA expression in hamster preantral follicles: Possible association with NF-YA. Biol Reprod. 2003;68(6):2180-8.
- Lv F, Wan Y, Chen Y, Pei L, Luo D, Fan G, et al. Prenatal dexamethasone exposure induced ovarian developmental toxicity and transgenerational effect in rat offspring. Endocrinology. 2018;159(3):1401-15.
- Lee VH, Lee LT, Chow BK. Gonadotropin‐releasing hormone: regulation of the GnRH gene. FEBS J. 2008;275(22):5458-78.
- de Figueiredo Moraes E, Teixeira VW, Teixeira ÁAC, da Silva WE, Batista APC, de Lemos AJJM, et al. Effect of the treatment with dexamethasone, for 10 and 15 days, on the fertility in induced rats to polycystic ovaries, by constant illumination. Int J Morphol. 2008;26(3):659-63.
- Tayade PM, Jagtap SA, Borde S, Chandrasekar N, Joshi A. Effect of Psoralea corylifolia on dexamethasone-induced insulin resistance in mice. J King Saud Univ Sci. 2012;24(3):251-5.
|