Avaliação do extrato bruto etanólico das flores de Acmella oleracea (L.) R.K. Jansen na prevenção da hiperplasia benigna da próstata em ratos SHR

Abstract

Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (BPH) is a disease that develops in men from the age of 40 onwards and progresses with advancing age. Even though it is benign, lack of care can cause many problems in quality of life, in addition to the side effects of medications. In the search for new therapies using medicinal plants for the prevention of prostate diseases, the aim of this study was to evaluate the therapeutic potential of the crude ethanol extract of Acmella oleracea R. K Jansen flowers (EEFAo) in the prevention of BPH in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). For this, 40 young male rats, 20 SHR rats and 20 Wistar rats (W), aged 9 weeks were used. The animals were treated via gavage for 60 consecutive days. The control group received 100 µL of saline solution daily and the animals in the treated group received 100 mg/kg of EEFAo diluted in 100 µL of saline solution. To evaluate the effects of the extract in preventing BPH, after euthanasia, organs were collected and submitted to histopathological, morphometric-stereological, immunohistochemical and biochemical analyses. Histopathological analyzes showed the occurrence of BPH in SHR animals, ensuring that it is a typical disease of the animal model. Morphologically, it was observed that the treatment reduced the degree of hyperplasia in the SHR group, due to a decrease in the prostatic epithelium and an increase in the luminal compartment when compared to the control. The treatment increased the secretory activity in SHR animals and in W animals caused a reduction. It also reduced collagen fibers in the prostate of SHR. There was an increase in weight in the testes in group W. In the immunohistochemical evaluation, a reduction in cell proliferation was observed, decreasing the frequency of PCNA-positive cells in the SHR group. There was a decrease in androgen receptors in group W prostate cells. Biochemical analyzes indicated that EEFAo acted as an antioxidant in the prostate of all groups, reducing MDA (malondialdehyde) and increasing SOD (superoxide dismutase) and CAT (catalase). The data show that EEFAo is effective in preventing benign hyperplasia in the ventral prostate of SHR, as it attenuates the morphological aspects and acts with an antioxidant effect.