A Quantitative Study on the Protective Effects of Resveratrol against Bisphenol A-induced Hepatotoxicity in Rats: A Stereological Study

BACKGROUND: Bisphenol A (BPA) is a widely used chemical with toxic effects on the liver. Resveratrol (RES) is an herbal compound with protective properties. This study aimed to investigate the protective effects of RES on the liver in rats exposed to BPA. METHODS: This study was conducted in 2018 in Shiraz, Iran. Thirty Sprague-Dawley male rats were divided into five groups: a control group (distilled water), a sham group (olive oil as a BPA solvent), a BPA group (50 mg/kg), an RES group (100 mg/kg), and a RES+BPA group (50 mg/kg+100 mg/kg). Olive oil, BPA, and RES were administered to the animals via gavage for eight weeks. After eight weeks, the animals’ livers were removed, and stereological measurements were made to obtain the total liver volume, portal triad volumes, hepatocyte nucleus and cytoplasm volumes, hepatocyte numbers, sinusoidal space volumes and lengths, and Kupffer cell (KC) numbers. The data were analyzed using the one-way analysis of variance test RESULTS: The hepatocyte number, the total liver volume, and hepatocyte nucleus and cytoplasm volumes in the BPA group decreased by 41% (P<0.001), 18% (P<0.001), 32% (P=0.030), and 37% (P=0.014), respectively. The number of KCs and the length of sinusoids in the BPA group were increased compared with all the other groups (P<0.001). Our histological study revealed vacuolization, sinusoidal space dilatation, and congestion in the BPA group. CONCLUSION: In this study, the RES group, compared with the BPA group, exhibited a decrease in the total volume and length of sinusoids and the number of KCs. Additionally, the RES group showed an increase in the total liver volume, hepatocyte nucleus and cytoplasm volumes, portal triad volumes, and hepatocyte numbers after oral administration