Withania somnifera ameliorates acrylamide induced hippocampal toxicity in the adult albino rats

Abstract Acrylamide (ACR) is a hazardous chemical compound found in many foods, including deep-fried, roasted, and baked products. Recently, Withania somnifera (WS) has been utilized in many studies as an antioxidant agent. The aim of the work is to clarify the neuroprotective capacity of WS against ACR-induced neurotoxicity in the hippocampus of adult albino rats. Forty adult male albino rats were divided into 4 groups; group I (control) which received saline orally, group II (WS treated group) which received orally 200 mg/kg of WS for 21 days, group III (ACR treated group) which received orally 25 mg/kg of ACR for 21 days and group IV (ACR + WS treated group) which received ACR and WS via the same methods and dosages as groups II and III. Hippocampus specimens were prepared for histological and immunohistochemical analysis. Both statistical and morphometric analyses were performed. The ACR-treated group showed shrunken pyramidal cells with dense nuclei, substantial pericellular gaps between cells, dilated blood capillaries, the granule cells appeared shrunken, dense with deeply stained nuclei, the pyramidal and granule cells displayed destructed mitochondria, dilated rough endoplasmic reticulum, many vacuolations, significant loss of the synaptic vesicles in the presynaptic terminals, and strong GFAP-immunoreaction. Concomitant administration of ACR and WS revealed partial preservation of histological architecture of the hippocampus. The neurotoxic effects of ACR can be mitigated, and the preservation of the architecture of the CA1 and dentate gyrus can be achieved with WS co-treatment.