¹Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Alanya Alaaddin Keykubat University, Alanya, Antalya, Türkiye
²Department of Pathology Laboratory Techniques, Vocational School, İstanbul Beykent University, Büyükçekmece, İstanbul, Türkiye
³Department of Interdisciplinary Neuroscience, Health Science Institue, Abant İzzet Baysal University, Bolu, Türkiye
⁴Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Abant İzzet Baysal University, Bolu, Türkiye DOI : 10.29228/jrp.2022.00 The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effects of Aronia melanocarpa (A. melanocarpa) extract on ovarian cell apoptosis, vascularization, and follicle reserve in the premature ovarian failure (POF) induced by cyclophosphamide (CYC). After creating a premature ovarian failure model with 100 mg/kg CYC, A. melanocarpa was given to Wistar albino female rats by gavage 15 times every other day (200 mg/kg).Vaginal smears were taken to evaluate the estrus cycles before, during and at the end of the experiment. Histological ovarian follicle count was performed by examining the ovaries with Hematoxylin&Eosin staining. Immunohistochemical evaluation of apoptosis markers of caspase-3 (cas-3), caspase-9 (cas-9) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was performed. A. melanocarpa reregulated the estrus cycles in a similar way to the controls by reducing cas-3 and cas-9 in ovarian cells and increasing the number of ovarian cells. While CYC disrupted ovarian vascularization, A. melanocarpa contributed to ovarian reserve by increasing VEGF immunopositivity. In chemotherapy-induced POF, A. melanocarpa extract increases ovarian reserve by providing vascularization, decreasing apoptosis and providing cycle control in female rats. Keywords : Aronia melanocarpa; premature ovarian failure; cyclophosphamide; VEGF; apoptosis