Introduction: In spite of the beneficial role of the beta-lactam antibiotics in the treatment of many cases of urinary tract infections, acute otitis media, and pneumonia, yet some medical reports incriminating it in producing certain adverse consequences following its use. Antibiotics remain important in pregnancy and may be second to only iron and food supplement.
Aim of Work: Hence, the present investigation was carried out to evaluate the effect of two doses of the beta-lactam antibiotic amoxicillin on the liver of maternally treated foetuses.
Materials and Methods: The pregnant female mice were allocated into three groups. The pregnant mothers of the first group served as control group (injected intra peritoneally with the drug solvent) and those of the other two groups were injected intra peritoneally for 8 days from day 7 till day14 during gestation with the low dose (205 mg/ kg body weight) and high dose (820 mg/ kg body weight) of the beta-lactam antibiotics amoxicillin.
Results: The histological examination of the foetal liver sections of amoxicillin-treated groups showed vacuolar and fatty degenerations in the cytoplasm of the hepatocytes, as well as inflammatory cell infiltration. At the ultrastructure level, the hepatocytes of maternally treated foetuses revealed conspicuous alternations, represented by devastations of mitochondria that displayed loss of their cristae and their internal matrices materials. Fragmentation of the cisternae of rough endoplasmic reticulum into smaller stacks was also observed.
Conclusion: The use of such doses of the beta-lactam antibiotic amoxicillin induces morphological alterations in fotal liver of mice subjected to this antibiotic during the period of gestation