الفهرس 
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Abstract
The present study was designed to examine, for the first time, the effectiveness of silymarin, which extracted from the seeds of Silybum marianum (Milk thistle), in the protection against the hepatic and testicular injuries resulting from the use of the drug flutamide. Biochemical parameters measured for this purpose included, tissue indexes of oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation and antioxidants) and markers of liver and testis function, in addition to the lipid profile. On the other hand, microscopic examination of the tissue sections were carried out to evaluate the histopathological changes in both liver and testis. Adult male rats weighing about 140-160 g were used for this study. They were divided into six groups, each group containing six rats. All treatments were given daily for 4 weeks through the mouth using the gastric tube. At the end of the experimental period, overnight fasted rats were, anesthetized by ether. Then, the animals were sacrificed using a sharp razor; blood samples were collected and centrifuged to obtain sera. The animals were dissected and portions from certain hepatic locations, and the whole testis were removed, cleaned, weighed and homogenized. Both sera and tissue homogenates were labeled and kept at -20°C for biochemical analysis. On the other hand, portions of liver and the whole left testis were fixed in 10% neutral formalin, then exposed to the procedure for preparation of hematoxyline and eosin sections, for microscope examinations. Obtained biochemical data were statistically evaluated by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Duncan’s multiple range tests. P value equal or less than 0.05 was considered significant. All values were expressed as the mean ± SE of six animals per group. Percentage of changes in treated groups were calculated. The present study provided an additional evidence that FLU can cause hepatotoxicity, as well as testicular toxicity. Co-treatment with SIL partially ameliorated the adverse effects of FLU on the liver and testis. The protective effect of SIL was more obvious in case of treatment with low dose. The observed protective impact of SIL, as a strong antioxidant, against FLU-induced hepatic and testicular toxicity, in addition to its anti-cancer effect, greatly encourage the recommendation of use of SIL as a complementary therapeutic agent with FLU in patients with prostate cancer. As the present study was the first which addressed part of the protective role of SIL against FLU-induced hepatic and testicular toxicity, larger-scale studies should be performed to determine what role this kind of combined treatment with SIL and FLU may have benefits for human application.