Investigation of the Effect of Melissa officinalis L. on Fetal Development by Ultrasonography in Rats

Year 2023, Volume: 5 Issue: 1, 7 - 16, 30.04.2023

Elvan Anadol Mürşide Demirel İpek Süntar Serap Gültekin Aydan Avdan Aslan Ayris Gökçeoğlu Meltem Bahcelıoglu Elif Gülçiçek Abbasoğlu Topa Ayşen Çalıkuşu Gül Fatma Yarım

https://doi.org/10.59124/guhes.1259079

Abstract

Medicinal plants have been used to treat many diseases since prehistoric times. With the discovery of new medicinal plants, new therapeutic areas have emerged. On the other hand, the posology of these plants and indications for use during pregnancy or adolescence are still debated. The use of Melissa officinalis L. (M. Officinalis) in traditional medicine is common, but its effect on fetal development is not clear. Ultrasonographic evaluation of fetal development is critical. Unfortunately, ultrasound probe differences used in pregnancy studies in rats are confusing. Therefore, in the present study, we aimed to search both possible effects of M. officinalis on fetal development, and test the effectiveness of human breast ultrasound probes in the ultrasonographic evaluation of rat fetuses. Rats were randomly divided into Control and M. officinalis groups. M. officinalis was gavaged for 21 consecutive days 24 hours after mating. Rats in the Control group were treated with the extract of M. officinalis. Ultrasonography examination was performed with the superficial probe used in breast examination in humans. Gestational sac diameters, biparietal diameters, crown-rump lengths, and heart rates of fetuses were measured in both groups. According to our results, ultrasonographic measurements on the 15th, 17th, and 20th days of pregnancy were higher in the M. officinalis group than in the Control group. However, both groups had no statistical significance according to all measurements. As a result, it was concluded that M. officinalis extract might not have any effect on the development of rat fetuses in terms of ultrasonographic examination, whereas pregnancy can be diagnosed with human ultrasonography devices and the development of fetuses can be followed in rats.

Keywords

Fetus, Melissa officinalis, Lamiaceae, Ultrasonography, Rat

References

• Abreu Tacon, F. S., de Moraes, C. L., Carvalho, V. P., Ramos, L. L. G., e Melo, N. C., do Amaral, W. N. (2020). Medicinal plants, herbal medicines, and pregnancy: effects on fetal morphology. Revista Brasileira de Plantas Medicinais/Brazilian Journal of Medicinal Plants, 22, 137-144.
• Ahmed, S. M., Nordeng, H., Sundby, J., Aragaw, Y. A., de Boer, H. J. (2018). The use of medicinal plants by pregnant women in Africa: a systematic review. Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 224, 297-313. Alinia-Ahandani, E. (2018). Medicinal plants effective on pregnancy, infections during pregnancy, and fetal infections. Journal of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research, 10, 3-3.
• Araújo, C. R. F., Santiago, F. G., Peixoto, M. I., de Oliveira, J. O. D., de Sousa Coutinho, M. (2016). Use of medicinal plants with teratogenic and abortive effects by pregnant women in a city in Northeastern Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia/RBGO Gynecology and Obstetrics, 38(03), 127-131.
• Bernstein, N., Akram, M., Yaniv‐Bachrach, Z., Daniyal, M. (2021). Is it safe to consume traditional medicinal plants during pregnancy?. Phytotherapy Research, 35(4), 1908-1924.
• Calina, D., Docea, A. O., Golokhvast, K. S., Sifakis, S., Tsatsakis, A., Makrigiannakis, A. (2019). Management of endocrinopathies in pregnancy: a review of current evidence. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(5), 781.
• Cora MC, Kooistra L, Travlos G. 2015. Vaginal cytology of the laboratory rat and mouse: review and criteria for the staging of the estrous cycle using stained vaginal smears. Toxicologic Pathology, 43:776–793. Dillard, D. M. (2022). Nutraceutical and phytotherapeutic support in pregnancy. In Fertility, Pregnancy, and Wellness (pp. 465-477). Elsevier.
• Godlove, M. J. (2011). Prevalence of herbal medicine use and associated factors among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic at Mbeya Refferal Hospital in 2010 (Doctoral dissertation, Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences).
• Hosseini, S. H., Bibak, H., Ghara, A. R., Sahebkar, A., Shakeri, A. (2021). Ethnobotany of the medicinal plants used by the ethnic communities of Kerman province, Southeast Iran. Journal of Ethnobiology and Ethnomedicine, 17(1), 1-35.
• Jaiswal, R. S., Singh, J., Adams, G. P. (2009). High-resolution ultrasound biomicroscopy for monitoring ovarian structures in mice. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 7(1), 1-7.
• Kirberger, R. M., Bester, E. G., Schulman, M. L., van Rensburg, I. J., Hartman, M. J. (2019). Ultrasonographic evaluation of fetal development in the rat. Theriogenology, 125, 24-29.
• Kooti, W., Ghasemiboroon, M., Asadi-Samani, M., Ahangarpoor, A., Zamani, M., Amirzargar, A., & Hardani, A. (2014). The effect of halcoholic extract of celery leaves on the delivery rate (fertilization and stillbirths), the number, weight and sex ratio of rat off spring. Advances in Environmental Biology, 8(10), 824-830.
• Liu, X., Shan, X., Chen, H., Li, Z., Zhao, P., Zhang, C., Lu, R. (2019). Stachydrine ameliorates cardiac fibrosis through inhibition of angiotensin II/transformation growth factor β1 fibrogenic axis. Frontiers in Pharmacology, 538. Lohmiller, J. J., Swing, S. P., & Hanson, M. M. (2006). Reproduction and breeding. In Suckow, M. A. (Ed.), The laboratory rat (pp. 147-164). USA: Elsevier Academic Press.
• Miraj, S., Rafieian-Kopaei, Kiani, S. (2017). Melissa officinalis L: A Review study with an antioxidant prospective. Journal of evidence-based complementary & alternative medicine, 22(3), 385-394.
• Moacă, E. A., Farcaş, C., Ghiţu, A., Coricovac, D., Popovici, R., Cărăba-Meiţă, N. L., Avram, Ş. (2018). A comparative study of Melissa officinalis leaves and stems ethanolic extracts in terms of antioxidant, cytotoxic, and antiproliferative potential. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine, 1-12. Manolescu, D. Ş., Guta, G., Avram, S. (2022). Antidepressant-like effect of natural compounds of Melissa officinalis L. Romanian Journal of Biophysics, 32(2).
• Marshall, N. E., Abrams, B., Barbour, L. A., Catalano, P., Christian, P., Friedman, J. E., ... & Thornburg, K. L. (2022). The importance of nutrition in pregnancy and lactation: lifelong consequences. American journal of obstetrics and gynecology, 226(5), 607-632.
• Paronis, E., Samara, A., Polyzos, A., Spyropoulos, C., & Kostomitsopoulos, N. G. (2015). Maternal weight as an alternative determinant of the gestational day of Wistar rats housed in individually-ventilated cages. Laboratory Animals, 49(3), 188-195.
• Toboła-Wróbel, K., Pietryga, M., Dydowicz, P., Napierała, M., Brązert, J., & Florek, E. (2020). Association of oxidative stress on pregnancy. Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity, 2020. Wake G, Court J, Pickering A, Lewis R, Wilkins R, Perry E (2000) CNS acetylcholine receptor activity in European medicinal plants traditionally used to improve failing memory, Journal of Ethnopharmacology, 69(2): 105-114. Ypsilantis, P., Deftereos, S., Prassopoulos, P., & Simopoulos, C. (2009). Ultrasonographic diagnosis of pregnancy in rats. Journal of the American Association for Laboratory Animal Science, 48(6), 734-739.