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Review
. 2010 Jul;12(4):468-79.
doi: 10.1038/aja.2010.43. Epub 2010 Jun 21.

Effects of plants and plant products on the testis

Shereen Cynthia D'Cruz  1 , Selvaraju Vaithinathan, Rajamanickam Jubendradass, Premendu Prakash Mathur
Affiliations
Review

Effects of plants and plant products on the testis

Shereen Cynthia D'Cruz et al. Asian J Androl. 2010 Jul.

Abstract

For centuries, plants and plant-based products have been used as a valuable and safe natural source of medicines for treating various ailments. The therapeutic potential of most of these plants could be ascribed to their anticancer, antidiabetic, hepatoprotective, cardioprotective, antispasmodic, analgesic and various other pharmacological properties. However, several commonly used plants have been reported to adversely affect male reproductive functions in wildlife and humans. The effects observed with most of the plant and plant-based products have been attributed to the antispermatogenic and/or antisteroidogenic properties of one or more active ingredients. This review discusses the detrimental effects of some of the commonly used plants on various target cells in the testis. A deeper insight into the molecular mechanisms of action of these natural compounds could pave the way for developing therapeutic strategies against their toxicity.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Target sites of plant toxicity in testis.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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