The purpose of this work was to evaluate the action of the vitamin E as a radioprotective agent in the process of tissue reparation in rats submitted to a surgical procedure, which consisted of a wound done in the fore dorsal area. The animals were divided into five groups: group C (controls) - wound; group VE - previous treatment with vitamin E (90 UI); group IR - wound and irradiation of the borders three days after surgery; group VEIR - previous treatment with 90 UI of the vitamin E and irradiation of the borders three days after the surgery; group OIR - previous treatment with olive oil and irradiation of the borders three days after surgery. The radioprotective effect of the vitamin E was evaluated using hematoxylin-eosin stained specimens in order to identify granulation tissue, at 4, 7, 14 and 21 days after the surgical procedures. The results showed that 6 Gy of electron irradiation with a beam of 6 MeV caused retardation of the tissue repairing process and that vitamin E was effective as a radioprotective agent.

Keywords: Vitamin E, Radioprotective, Free radicals, Ionizing radiation, Tissue reparation