Lectin Histochemical Study of Rat Reproductive Tissues Treated with Ether Fraction of Anethum graveolens L.Extracts

Introduction: nowadays, there is special interest in finding a new contraceptive drug withhigh safety and fewer side effects. investigations have shown that dill (anethum graveolens l.)can be used either as a menstrual cycle regulator or contraceptive. since cell surface terminalsugars have crucial roles in oocyte maturation, fertilization and implantation, in this study weinvestigated the effects of ether fraction of dill seed extracts on ovarian and uterine cell surfaceglycoconjugates.methods: adult wistar female rats were divided into 6 groups: control, sham, low (0.5 g/kg)and high (5 g/kg) doses of ether fraction of dill seed aqueous extract and low (0.045 g/kg) andhigh (0.45 g/kg) doses of ether fraction of dill seed ethanol extracts and treated for 10 days.histological sections of uterus and ovary were prepared and stained by con a, dba, sba,uea, and pna lectins. intensity of reactions of uterine and glycoconjugates of ovarian cellsurfaces was measured by image-java software.results: the intensity of reactions of endometrial epithelial cells (p=0.01 and p =0.00) andmyometrial cells (p=0.02 and p=0.03) after con a and dba staining were significantly lower inthe high-dose aqueous extract treated group than in the control group. corpus luteum granulosacell reactions in low doses of aqueous extract (p =0.01) and corpus luteum granulosa cell andoocytes in high doses of aqueous extract (p =0.02 and p =0.04) were decreased compared tothe control group.conclusion: ether fraction of dill extracts, especially in the form of aqueous extract, couldaffect cell surface terminal sugar.