jsmc-10038

EFFECT OF ACYCLOVIR ON EMBRYO IMPLANTATION IN MICE

Snoor Jalal Mustafa * and Kameel Mate Naoum ** 

*  Department of Anatomy and Histology, School of Medicine, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Sulaimani, Sulaimani-Kurdistan Region of Iraq.

** Department of Anatomy and Histology, College of Medicine, Hawler Medical University, Erbil-Iraq.

Submitted: 27/4/2013; Accepted: 5/8/2013

DOI Link: https://doi.org/10.17656/jsmc.10038 

ABSTRACT

Background

Acyclovir is the antiviral drug used for treatment of herpes simplex and varcilla zoster viral infections and its adverse effects are not well studied on the embryo implantation.

Objectives

This study was conducted to determine the effect of Acyclovir on the process of implantation in mice of Swiss Webster Albino type and to detect whether there is any effect of Acyclovir on implantation of embryo in mice.

Materials and Methods

Adult female Swiss Webster albino mice were used in this study, aged 8-10 weeks and of 20-25gms body weight. The study was conducted from October 2009 through January 2010. A group of 24 mature female mice were included in this study and they were divided into two groups: Group 1(experimental group), included 12 mice injected with a single daily dose of 50 mg/kg b.wt. of Acyclovir subcutaneously on day 1-5 of gestation at 10:00 a.m; Group 2 included 12 mice injected D.W subcutaneously and considered as a control group. All animals were sacrificed on day 7 at noon and the uteri of all mice were examined for presence of implantation sites.

Results

In this study, out of 12 pregnant females, only two embryos were implanted from only one mouse (8.33%), the remaining 11 (91.67%) showed no sign of implantation at day7 postcoitus. The mean implant in the experimental group was 0.16±0.75, whereas in the control group a total of 84 embryos from 12 pregnant females were implanted and the mean implant was 7±1.41. Statistically, the result was highly significant since the p-value was < 0.01.

Conclusion

Exposure to Acyclovir at early days of pregnancy resulted in inhibition of embryo implantation.

KEYWORDS

Acyclovir, Implantation, Embryo, Mice.

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