Background and Objective: Diabetes mellitus is one of the most common metabolic disorders worldwide. Numerous natural compounds have been developed to treat diabetes mellitus. Royal jelly (RJ) has antioxidant and antidiabetic properties. This study was carried out to investigate the effects of RJ on antioxidant status, lipid peroxidation and liver tissue in diabetic rats.

Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 32 adult male Wistar rats (190-200 gr) were randomly divided into 4 groups including control, royal jelly, diabetic and diabetic treated with royal jelly. Diabetes was induced by intraperitoneal injection of streptozotocin (50 mg/kg) and Royal Jelly (100 mg/kg) was gavaged for 42 days. At the end of our study, serum levels of malondialdehyde, total antioxidant capacity (TCA) and superoxide dismutase/glutathione peroxidase activity were determined spectrophotometrically, while the rat’s livers were isolated for histological study.

Results: Consumption of RJ showed a significant decrease in malondialdehyde serum levels (P= 0.007) and a significant increase in total antioxidant capacity, superoxide dismutase (P=0.0019) and glutathione peroxidase activity in the RJ treated diabetic rats compared to diabetic rats (P= 0.003). Administration of royal jelly improved liver histological states.

Conclusion: RJ increases antioxidant power and prevents the occurrence of histopathological changes resulting from diabetes in rats.