Anti-Apoptotic Effects of Thymoquinone in Cisplatin-Induced Testicular Injury: A Focus on Cleaved Caspase-3 Expression

Aim: Cisplatin, an effective chemotherapeutic agent, has many side effects, including testicular damage that impairs spermatogenesis and may cause infertility. We aimed to eliminate or minimize the negative effects of Cisplatin on testicular tissue with Thymoquinone, which is increasingly investigated due to its biological properties. Material and Method: For this purpose, 29 Wistar albino rats were randomly divided into Control (n = 4), Sham (n = 4), Cisplatin (n = 7), Cisplatin + Thymoquinone (n = 7), and Thymoquinone (n = 7) groups. Corn oil was given to the Sham group via gavage for 10 days. The Cisplatin and Cisplatin + Thymoquinone groups received Cisplatin (1.5 mg/kg/day, intraperitoneally) on days 3, 5, and 7, while Thymoquinone (50 mg/kg/day, orally) was administered daily for 10 days to the Cisplatin + Thymoquinone and Thymoquinone groups. On day 10, testicular tissues were removed under anesthesia and processed for histological and immunohistochemical analyses using Cleaved Caspase-3 antibody.Results: A significant decrease was observed in the expression of the Cleaved Caspase-3 antibody, which indicates apoptosis, in the Cisplatin + Thymoquinone group compared to the Cisplatin group. It was determined that Thymoquinone reduced testicular damage and germ cell apoptosis caused by Cisplatin. Conclusion: These results show that Thymoquinone is effective in repairing the damage caused by Cisplatin in testicular tissue and reducing spermatid apoptosis, but it needs to be supported by new studies to be used as a chemoprotectant.