The Effects of Butylparaben Administration on Oxidative Stress Markers in Rat Brain and Serum

Parabens are used for preservative purposes in various fields, especially in pharmaceutical, cosmetic and food products. Recent studies suggest that parabens may affect oxidative stress mechanisms in biological systems and may cause cellular damage. This experiment was created to better understand the possible biological effects of butylparaben (BP) by evaluating the effects of BP administration on oxidative stress parameters in brain tissue, serum and erythrocytes in rats. For this purpose, 28 Wistar Albino rats divided into 4 different groups were administered BP at doses of 0, 100, 200, 400 mg/kg/day by oral gavage. Oxidative stress parameters such as total oxidant status (TOS), total antioxidant status (TAS), oxidative stress index (OSI), glutathione (GSH) and malondialdehyde (MDA) and catalase (CAT) were measured in the brain, serum and erythrocytes of rats. The findings revealed a statistically notable increase in MDA concentrations within the brain tissue of the BP-treated groups evaluated to the control group (p0.05). These findings provided proof that BP affects oxidative stress by increasing lipid peroxidation but does not produce large changes in the overall oxidative balance, especially since BP was detected in brain regions and the brain is sensitive to lipid peroxidation. This study aims to contribute to further research to understand the effects of BP on oxidative stress in more detail.