title: Effect of dietary boron on 5-fluorouracil induced oral mucositis in rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of boron on 5-fluorouracil (5-FU)-induced oral mucositis in rats.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty-four male Wistar albino rats were injected with 5-FU on days 1 and 3. The right cheek pouch mucosa was scratched with the tip of an 18-G needle, dragged twice in a linear movement, on days 3 and 5. The animals were randomly divided into two groups of 32: boron group (BG) and control group (CG). Rats in the CG did not receive any treatment, whereas the others were fed boron (3 mg·kg(-1)·day(-1)) by gavage. The animals were sacrificed on day 3 (n = 8), 6 (n = 8), 9 (n = 8), and 12 (n = 8), and the cheek pouch was removed for histopathological analysis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  On day 3, both groups showed necrosis and active inflammation, but the inflammation was mild in CG and moderate in BG. On day 6, both BG and CG showed necrosis; in the CG, there was moderate inflammation, and in the BG, there was severe inflammation and granulation tissue around the necrotic area. On day 9, re-epithelization began in both groups, and there were no differences between groups. Re-epithelization was complete in both groups on day 12.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We found no beneficial effect of boron in healing oral mucositis. Additional research is warranted to elucidate the pathogenic inflammatory mechanisms involved in mucositis and the prophylactic and therapeutic roles of antioxidants.
authors.affiliation: Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Faculty of Dentistry, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Turkiye.
authors.forename: Mutan Hamdi
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Aras
authors.affiliation: Department of Periodontology, Faculty of Dentistry, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Turkiye.
authors.forename: Ufuk
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Sezer
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Turkiye.
authors.forename: Suna
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Erkilic
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Turkiye.
authors.forename: Tuncer
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Demir
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Turkiye.
authors.forename: Seyda Nur
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Dagli
keywords: Antioxidant; boron; oncology; oral mucositis