Effects of Phloretin on Bisphenol-A Induced Liver and Kidney Toxicity in Prepubertal Female Rats.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effects of phloretin against bisphenol-A (BPA)-induced liver and kidney damage in rats using histopathological and biochemical parameters. Materials and Methods: This study started on female rats on the postnatal 28th day via subcutaneous injection by dissolving the compounds in corn oil at 30-min intervals, starting with phloretin, and followed by BPA. The dose of BPA was 50 mg/kg bw/day, and the doses of phloretin were 0.5, 5, and 50 mg/kg bw/day. Treatments were administered every day for 15 days. Histopathological, morphometric, and biochemical parameters were analyzed. Results: Histopathological evaluation revealed tubular degeneration, fibrous tissue formation, congestion, and edema in the kidney tissue and cellular degeneration and congestion in the liver tissue. BPA treatment resulted in a statistically significant increase in serum urea and alanine aminotransferase levels and a decrease in serum glucose and aspartate aminotransferase levels. Against these effects of BPA, a positive effect was detected only on serum urea levels in rats treated with 50 mg/kg bw/day phloretin. There was also no significant change in serum triglyceride, creatinine, and albumin levels in the BPA positive control group. The renal morphometric analysis revealed that treatment with 0.5 mg/kg bw/day phloretin reduced the BPA-induced glomerular damage. Conclusion: Biochemical parameters and histopathological findings in the kidney and liver tissues revealed no clear evidence of a protective effect of phloretin against the damage caused by BPA. Hence, phloretin exhibits a low level of protection against liver and kidney damage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]