Protective Effect of N-Acetyl Cysteine Against Formaldehyde-Induced Neuronal Damage in Cerebellum of Mice

Background: formaldehyde, a colorless aldehyde with pungent odor, has negativeeffects on central nervous system. but, there are a little data about protective substancesagainst neuronal damage induced by formaldehyde. therefore, the present study was toexamine histological changes in the cerebellum of formaldehyde exposed mice andpossible effects of n-acetyl cysteine on these changes at histopatological level.methods: forty eight adult male nmri mice were randomly divided into six groups: (i)control, (ii) treated with 10 mg/kg formaldehyde, (iii) treated with formaldehyde and50 mg/kg n-acetyl cysteine, (iv) treated with formaldehyde and 100 mg/kg n-acetylcysteine, (v) treated with formaldehyde and 200 mg/kg n-acetyl cysteine, (vi) treatedwith formaldehyde and 400 mg/kg n-acetyl cysteine. at the end of 14 days, thecerebellums were processed histologically and morphometric study was carried outusing image j software. data were analyzed using spss software version 20.0 andanova test. results: the present study demonstrated a remarkable decrease in boththe thickness and the number of the neurons of granular layer as well as the mean sizeand the mean number of purkinje cells in formaldehyde-treated mice. treatment with 50mg/kg nac increased the number of the neurons in molecular layer of the cerebellumas well as the thickness of the gray and white matter. moreover, it increased thenumbers of purkinje cells (8.47±3.01 vs. 5.82±1.41). conclusions: our results suggestthat administration with 50 mg/kg n-acetyl cysteine prevents formaldehyde-inducedneuronal damage in cerebellum of mice.