The Protective Role of Poplar Propolis Against Alcohol-Induced Biochemical and Histological Changes in Liver and Testes Tissues of Rats

Objective: This study evaluated the biochemical and histopathological effects of propolis oil extract on liver and testiculartissue in rats subjected to alcohol toxicity.Materials and Methods: Sixty Wistar albino rats were randomly assigned into 6 groups: Control, Ethanol (EtOH: 20%ethanol) Propolis-1 (PR1: 100 mg/kgbw) Propolis-2 (PR2: 200 mg/kgbw) EtOH+PR1, and EtOH+PR2. Rats were administeredethanol and propolis by gastric tube for 15 days. Hematological, biochemical, and histopathological (liver and testes)parameters were examined. In addition, sperm concentration and motility were determined.Results: Increased deterioration of complete blood count parameters was statistically significant in the EtOH group whencompared to the control group. Propolis was preventative for some effects of EtOH. The most pronounced preventive effectof propolis on ethanol-induced damage was observed in nucleated red blood cells (NRBC) and mean corpuscular hemoglobinconcentration (MCHC) parameters (p<0.01). Cholesterol and triglyceride levels were found to be highest in the EtOH group,and propolis was found to reduce these effects of ethanol (p<0.01). While the highest value for the testosterone hormonewas seen in the PR2 group, propolis was found to decrease the hormone level decline caused by ethanol especially in theEtOH+PR2 group. Although it was not statistically significant, giving rats ethanol showed reduced sperm motility and epididymalsperm concentration, whereas co-administering propolis and ethanol showed an increase in these values.Conclusion: It was found that ethanol caused negative effects on the biochemical parameters studied, and histopathologicalassessments also showed negative effects on liver and testicular tissue. Propolis (200 mg/kgbw), on the other hand, wasfound to have a mitigating effect on these values.Keywords: Ethanol, alcohol, propolis, liver, testes, semen