THE PROTECTIVE EFFECT OF SPIRONOLACTONE ON ISCHEMIA/REPERFUSION INJURY IN RAT OVARY

This study aims to investigate the potential protective effect of spironolactone against ischemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) in rat ovaries. Twenty-four female rats were randomly assigned to four groups (6 rats per group) for the administration of the study drug, spironolactone: Control (C), Ischemia (I), Ischemia-Reperfusion (I-R), and spironolactone-treated (IR-S) groups. The study group underwent bilateral ovarian ischemia for 4 hours, followed by 4 hours of reperfusion, with the initiation of IRI and daily oral administration of spironolactone (100 mg/kg) for three consecutive days before ischemia induction. Additionally, administration was scheduled 30 minutes before the reperfusion phase. Histological examination using hematoxylin and eosin staining was conducted to assess hemorrhage and edema scores, and immunostaining with Cysteine-aspartic protease 3 (Caspase 3), Microtubule-associated protein 1A/1B-light chain 3B (LC3B)  Interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), and Tumor Necrosis Factor alpha (TNF-α). The results revealed that spironolactone treatment significantly reduced histological damage and monocyte count in the IR-S group compared to the I and I-R groups (p < 0.05). Our findings suggest that spironolactone exerts a protective effect against ovarian IRI in rats. This protection may be attributed to its antioxidant, vasodilatory effects, and anti-inflammatory properties, collectively contributing to preserving tissue integrity and function.