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Effect of metformin treatment on ovarian function in hypothyroid rats
Nabil Abbas Soliman1, Amr A Shalaby1, Khaled A Abulfadle2
1Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Zagazig University, Sharkya, Egypt.
Background:
Among women in their reproductive years, hypothyroidism is a prevalent endocrine condition linked to insulin resistance and abnormalities in ovarian function.
Aim:
The current study sought to determine how metformin treatment affected thyroid-stimulating hormone (TSH) levels, thyroid morphology in hypothyroidism, and ovarian alterations in polycystic ovary syndrome. It also sought to determine whether metformin was beneficial as an insulin sensitizer.
Methods:
Four equal groups of forty adult, healthy female albino rats of the local strains weighed an average of 150-170 g apiece. Group III and Group IV received propylthiouracil (Thyrocil 50 mg tablets, Amoun, Egypt) dissolved in distilled water (15 mg/kg body weight) orally for 45 days by dose calculation equation is Dosage each Rats=15 mg × weight of Rat (gm)/1,000 gm, while Group I received distilled water orally for 90 days. Group II received distilled water orally daily for the first 45 days of the study, and then received metformin Hydrochloride (1 g tablets, Chemical Industries Development, Giza) (50 mg/100 g body weight), daily from the 46th day of the study until the end (90th day). Group III received 1 ml of distilled water orally every day from the 46th day of the study until the study's 90th day. Group IV was administered metformin orally at a dose of (50 mg/100 g bwt) every day starting on the 46th day of the research and continuing until the 90th day. Biochemical measurements, thyroid, and ovarian histology were examined.
Results:
These findings supported the hypothesis that thyroid hypofunction is linked to disrupted metabolic and ovarian function. They also showed that metformin treatment improved thyroid and ovarian changes in a rat model of hypothyroidism.
Conclusion:
The anti-inflammatory and antioxidant characteristics of metformin were confirmed, as they enhanced ovarian function alterations while having no influence on ovarian modifications in the rat model of hypothyroidism. These results showed that metformin had no effect on ovarian architecture in euthyroid rats.
