Abstract:

Objective: This paper focuses on the evaluation of the effect of soy isoflavones on the expression of Bcl-2 mRNA and Bax mRNA in ovary and uterus in youth female rats and the elucidation of anti-aging mechanism of soy isoflavones in youth female rats from the viewpoint of apoptosis. Methods Fifty two-month-old youth female rats were chosen to be divided into five groups of 10 rats each by body weight: control group (basic diet), low-dose group (soy isoflavones 100 mg/(kg bw·d), middledose group (soy isoflavones 200 mg/(kg bw·d), high-dose group (soy isoflavones 300 mg/(kg bw·d), estrogen-treated group (diethylstilbestrol 0.5 mg/kg). The experiments lasted for 7 consecutive weeks. The expression of Bcl-2 mRNA and Bax mRNA in ovaries an uterus were detected by in situ hybridization method. Results: compared with the control group, the expression of Bcl-2 mRNA in ovary and uterus in soy isoflavones-treated groups was significantly increased, while the expression of Bax mRNA was significantly decreased. Conclusions. Soy isoflavones can enhance the expression of contra-apoptosis gene Bcl-2 mRNA and reduce the expression of auxo-apoptosis gene Bax mRNA. This is probably a good explanation of the anti-aging mechanism of soy isoflavones in youth female rats.

Key words: soy isoflavone, youth female rat, Bcl-2 mRNA, Bax mRNA