Proliferation and apoptosis in the rabbit ovary after administration of T-2 toxin and quercetin

T-2 mycotoxin, a natural contaminant of cereals and agricultural products, is known to exhibit the severest toxicity and the lowest LD50 value among trichothecenes. Since quercetin has been reported to have strong antioxidant properties, the effect of quercetin and T-2 toxin on rabbit ovarian cell proliferation and apoptosis was assessed. In the ovaries, proliferating cells were analysed immunocytochemically (proliferating cell nuclear antigen as a marker) and apoptotic cells by the terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase (TdT)-mediated biotinylated deoxyuridine triphosphates (dUTP) nick endlabeling (TUNEL) method. It was found that: 1. a single dose of T-2 toxin (0.08 mg · kg−1 body weight (BW) 72 h before slaughter) decreased cell proliferation, 2. chronic exposure to quercetin (1 mg · kg−1 BW; 90 days, 3 times per week) results in increased cell proliferation and reduced cell apoptosis, 3. quercetin has the potential to attenuate T-2 toxin-induced proliferation arrest. To clarify the mechanism of T-2 toxin and quercetin action in the rabbit ovary, further experiments are necessary.