Introduction:Radiotherapy is an important therapeutic manner of a wide range of tumors. Its side effects on normal cells limit the efficiency of therapy. Aim of the work: To evaluate the protective role of daidzein and/or vitamin C against biochemical, histopathological and ultrastructural changes in male albino rats exposed to gamma radiation (γ-radiation). Materials and Methods: The whole-body exposed to 8 GY γ-radiation. Daidzein was given to rats at a concentration of 63 mg/kg b.wt./day for 7 days before irradiation and 7 days during exposure. Whereas vitamin C was ingested at a concentration of 5 mg/kg b.wt. /day for 7 days before irradiation and 7 days during exposure. Animals were sacrificed on the 1st day post the irradiation dose. Blood samples were collected for biochemical determination of uric acid, urea, and creatinine. Lipid peroxides (TBARS) concentration and the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) were also measured. Samples from the kidney were processed for light and electron microscopy. Results: Irradiation induced significant elevation in uric acid, urea, creatinine and TBARS. These changes were accompanied by significant decrease in antioxidant status (SOD, CAT, and GPx). Also, the histological and ultrastructural investigation displayed remarkable changes in kidney tissue. Daidzein and /or vitamin C reduced the kidney damage induced by irradiation; this was showed by declined levels of creatinine, urea and uric acid, in addition to increased CAT, GPx, and SOD activities. The histopathological structure and ultrastructural alternations were also improved. The radioprotection index for the combination of daidzein and vitamin C was found to be more than daidzein or vitamin C separately. Conclusion: Daidzein and vitamin C might modulate radiation damages to kidney by boosting the antioxidant capacity and attenuating oxidative injury.

Introduction: Cyclophosphamide (CP) is a widely used anti-cancer drug which can induce serious male infertility. Aim of the study: The present study aims at determining the protective role of alpha-lipoic acid and royal jelly in improving biochemical, histological and ultrastructural disorders in the testis of rats induced by CP. Materials and Methods: 64 rats were separated into eight groups each of 8 rats. (G1) control group, (G2) alkaline solution treated group, (G3) DMSO treated group, (G4) Alpha-lipoic acid (LA) treated group, (G5) Royal jelly (RJ) treated group, (G6) CP treated group (5 mg/kg b.wt) three days per a week for 4 weeks, (G7) CP plus LA treated group (25 mg/kg b. wt) and (G8) CP plus RJ treated group (1g/kg b. wt). Animals were sacrificed after 4 weeks. Results: CP leads to an increase in lipid peroxidation in form of malonaldehyde (MDA) and decline in superoxide dismutase (SOD) in comparison with control. It caused histopathological changes in testes of rats including vacuolation, exfoliation of germ cells in the lumina of the seminiferous tubules, and maturation arrest. Furthermore, oedema was also observed and congestion of the intertubular blood vessels. Ultrastructurally, the boundary tissue of some tubules displayed noticeable changes; it was thickened and folded. Sertoli cells displayed an increase in the number of lysosomes and their nuclei showed signs of pyknosis, cytoplasmic vacuolation. Administration of LA and RJ to CP-treated rats revealed marked improvement in the altered level of SOD and MDA activities when compared with the CP-treated group and showed improvement in histopathology and ultrastructure of the testis. Conclusion: Treatment of the cyclophosphamide with the alpha-lipoic acid-induced great regaining of the damaged testicular tissues and royal jelly induced little regaining of the damaged testicular tissues, so LA was effective in treatment with CP than RJ with CP. This enhancement because of their antioxidant properties and its scavenging abilities against active free radicals.