Accelerated Recovery of 5-Fluorouracil-Damaged Bone Marrow after Oxytocin Treatment

Our preliminary data indicate that Oxytocin may be myeloprotective. We investigated whether it can modify bone marrow recovery. Oxytocin (150 μg/kg) accelerated the recovery of the number of medium size cells (MI%) and platelets (PLT) but did not affect the number of circulating red blood cells (RBC) and total count of white blood cells (WBC). Oxytocin injected subcutaneously for 5 consecutive days at doses of 150 μg/kg (twice a day) after 5-FU single dose. Glutathione GSH (anti-oxidant) has preventive effects against 5-FU-induced myelosuppression and can accelerate recovery of bone marrow. Oxytocin only increase GSH levels insignificantly (P > 0.05).These findings suggest that Oxytocinselectively enhances the recovery of the population of progenitor cells reduced by 5-FU in rats.