Histological And Immunohistochemical Study Of The Effect Of Gibberellic Acid (GA3) On Postnatal Development Of Liver In Albino Rat And Role Of Olive Oil As A Protectant.

Introduction: Gibberellic acid (GA3) , a plant growth hormone that causes hazards to organs, usually by ingestion of fresh fruits. Liver is considered the first toxicity site . Olive oil, a vegetable oil, is a source of antioxidants. Objectives: Study the effect of gibberellic acid (GA3) on postnatal development of liver and role of olive oil for protection by applying histological and immunohistochemical techniques.Materials and Methods: Adult female rats, were mated with males , then they were divided into 3 equal groups of 15 rats each: control (received no treatment), GA3 treated ( received GA3 at a dose of 55 mg/kg. B.W. orally in distilled water with concentration 0.2 g per litre) and protected ( received at the same time , both GA3 in the previous dose and olive oil via gastric gavage at a dose of 16.6 ml/kg. of B.W.).Doses of GA3 and olive oil , usually given from day 14 of pregnancy till day 21 after delivery and were given to offsprings from weaning(21th day)till adulthood (2 months ). Offsprings were sacrificed at these ages: newborn, 7 days and adult (2months). Liver samples were processed for light microscopy at all ages ,electron microscopy at adult age and immunohistochemical study for adult only using caspase-3.Results: Light microscopy revealed impaired hepatic architecture in GA3 treated group with vacuolated hepatocytes . Central and portal veins were congested .Marked fibrosis of portal area was detected. Protected group ,there was improvement .Ultrastudy of hepatocyte in GA3 treated group revealed shrunken nucleus with vacuolated cytoplasm and damaged organellles. kupffer cells had ink particles in them . Caspase-3 immunohistochemical staining showed strong reactivity in GA3 treated compared to protected one. Conclusion: Gibberellic acid (GA3) has toxic effect on hepatic tissue at different postnatal ages and olive oil can reduce its hazardous effect .