Mamoona Shoukat, Shamaila Ejaz, Asma Sajjad Khawaja, Ammara Ghafoor, Nadia Ahmad, Uruj Zehra.
Study of Morphological Changes and Nitrotyrosine Expression Induced by Aspartame in Albino Wistar Rat Ovaries.
J Sharif Med Dent Coll Jan ;9(2):56-61.

Objective: To observe the dose dependent effect of aspartame on the histological architecture of ovary and nitrotyrosine expression by immunohistochemistry. Methodology: This experimental study was performed at the University of Health Sciences, Lahore. In this study, twenty four adult female albino Wistar rats of age 6-8 weeks with a weight range of 150-180 grams were acquired from the animal house of the university and divided into four equal groups (A, B, C, and D). Aspartame was given at doses of 250 mg/kg, 500 mg/kg, and 1000 mg/kg daily for 30 days to three experimental groups (B, C, and D), while the control group (A) was given distilled water. Animals were sacrificed at the estrus phase and ovaries were dissected. Initial and final body weights, weight of ovaries, ovarian follicular parameters on hematoxylin and eosin (H & E) stained sections, and nitrotyrosine expression on immunohistochemistry were evaluated. Data was analyzed on Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and p-value =<0.05 was considered significant. Results: A significant difference was observed in the final body weight of rats of experimental groups (p <0.001). Aspartame administration caused a significant decrease in the number of primordial (p=0.001) and primary (p=0.01) follicles, while a significant decrease in the diameter of primary (p=0.01) and secondary (p=0.001) follicles in rats of experimental groups was observed with a maximum decrease in group D. Nitrotyrosine expression was significantly increased in the aspartame administered groups (p=0.005). Conclusion: The use of aspartame causes ovarian changes that may lead to infertility mainly due to oxidative stress. Keywords: Aspartame. Oxidative stress. Ovaries.

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