title: Azithromycin prevents pregnancy loss: reducing the level of tumor necrosis factor-alpha and raising the level of interleukin-10 in rats.
abstract: The aim of this study was to determine the effect of azithromycin on LPS-induced pregnancy loss. Thirty-six pregnant female Wistar rats were divided into 4 equal groups as follows: control group, where 0.3 mL of normal saline solution was administered intravenously on day 10 of pregnancy; azithromycin group, where azithromycin was administered orally at 350 mg kg(-1) day on days 9, 10, and 11 of pregnancy; lipopolysaccharide group, where LPS was administered intravenously via the tail vein at 160 μg kg(-1) on day 10 of pregnancy; and the azithromycin + LPS group, where azithromycin was administered orally at 350 mg kg(-1) day on days 9, 10, and 11 of pregnancy and LPS was administered intravenously at 160 μg kg(-1) on day 10 of pregnancy. Blood samples were obtained from the tail vein on day 10 of the experiment. Pregnancy rates were determined. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF- α ) and interleukin (IL-10) levels were measured by ELISA. Azithromycin prevented (P < 0.05) LPS-induced pregnancy loss. Higher TNF- α and IL-10 levels were measured (P < 0.05) in the LPS and azithromycin + LPS groups, respectively. In conclusion, azithromycin may be useful in infection- or endotoxemia-dependent pregnancy loss.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Selcuk, 42075 Konya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Ayse
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Er
mesh_terms: D000031:Abortion, Septic / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D017963:Azithromycin / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D016753:Interleukin-10 / Q000097:blood*; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides / Q000633:toxicity; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000097:blood*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D008070:Lipopolysaccharides; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D016753:Interleukin-10; D017963:Azithromycin