Mechanism of resveratrol in improving ovarian function in a rat model of premature ovarian insufficiency.

AIM: To investigate the mechanism of resveratrol treatment in chemically induced premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) in rats.

METHODS: Five-week-old specific pathogen-free healthy Sprague-Dawley female rats (n = 90) were randomly divided into five groups (n = 18): low-dose resveratrol (group A), moderate-dose resveratrol (group B), high-dose resveratrol (group C), model control group (group D) and blank control group (group E). POI was induced in rats from the resveratrol-treated groups and the model control group according to observed indexes using a previously established model (oral administration of tripterygium wilfordii polyglycoside tablet 50 mg/kg/day for 14 days). Western blot analysis was performed to compare levels of PI3K, p-PI3K, Akt, p-Akt, mTOR, p-mTOR, Bax, Bcl-2 and Caspase-3 in ovarian tissues of each group, and expression of p-Akt, p-mTOR, Bax, Bcl-2 and Caspase-3 was also evaluated by immunohistochemistry. Serum levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) were determined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.

RESULTS: Compared with controls, we found that serum MDA decreased and SOD increased in resveratrol-treated groups. In addition, we found increased expression of p-PI3K, p-Akt, p-mTOR and Bcl-2, and decreased expression of Bax and Caspase-3 were observed in ovarian tissues of treated rats with POI. There was reduced ovarian function in POI rats compared with rats from the blank control group.

CONCLUSION: Resveratrol reduced oxidative stress and inhibited apoptosis in granulosa cells by activating the PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway in a rat model of POI.