BAX and hydrops fetalis: We also performed western blot experiment where administration of Pino upregulated the expression of antiapoptotic protein bcl-2 and, in contrast, downregulated the pro-apoptotic proteins including p53, bax and cleaved caspase-3, along with an increased bcl-2/bax ratio versus HF group, indicating an activation of apoptosis procedure, which was also confirmed by the TUNEL assay where Pino demonstrated a reversed effect on apoptotic rate (Fig. 3D).