Regenerative role of Genistein treatment on Fibrotic and inflammatory Biomarkers Alteration in the Lung of Estrogen deficient Rats

Abstract Background Phytoestrogens are suggested to have estrogenic effects in the pulmonary system and have been revealed with a few adverse side effects. In this study, we tried to investigate the effect of genistein treatment on estrogen deficiency-induced lung injury and demonstrating whether genistein supplementation could replace estrogen hormone in postmenopausal women. Methods Forty adult female rats were divided into four groups; sham: rats that underwent surgery without ovariectomy, OVX: rats that underwent ovariectomies, OVX.E: ovariectomized rats with eight weeks period of estrogen treatment (20µg/kg/day), OVX.Gen: ovariectomized rats with eight week period of genistein treatment (1mg/kg/day). At the end of the experiment, lung tissue was removed and inflammatory and fibrotic biomarkers were evaluated with western blotting technique. Hematoxylin-eosin and immunohistochemical staining were used to evaluate histomorphological changes in the lung tissue. Results Genistein treatment restored ERK1/2, TGFβ1, MMP2, and IL1β, Bcl-2, and caspase3 expression levels, implying the effectiveness of genistein supplementation in targeting estrogen deficiency symptoms. Conclusions Genistein supplementation exerted protective effects against ovariectomy-induced lung injury with reducing inflammation and fibrosis, moreover, it can be recommended as a natural alternative to postmenopausal hormone therapy.