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. 2011 Oct;5(3):186-92.
Epub 2011 Dec 22.

Prevention of di (2-ethylhexyl) Phthalate-induced Testicular Disturbance in Mice by Co-administration of L-carnitine

Zohre Zare  1 , Moslem Mohammadi  2 , Hossein Eimani  3 , Majid Malekzadeh Shafaroudi  4
Affiliations

Prevention of di (2-ethylhexyl) Phthalate-induced Testicular Disturbance in Mice by Co-administration of L-carnitine

Zohre Zare et al. Int J Fertil Steril. 2011 Oct.

Abstract

Background: di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) is widely used in the plastic industry and can induce reproductive toxicity. On the other hand, L-carnitine (LC) plays a crucial role in sperm metabolism and maturation. This study evaluates the effect of LC on body and testis weight, testis tissue, count, motility, viability, morphology, and chromatin quality of epididymal sperm, testicular spermatid number (TSN) per gram testis and daily sperm production (DSP) in LC-treated mice.

Materials and methods: IN THIS EXPERIMENTAL STUDY, ADULT MALE NMRI MICE (MEAN AGE: 4 weeks) were given doses of DEHP and LC by gavaging for 2 weeks. All samples were assessed according to World Health Organization (WHO) criteria. Sperm morphology was assessed using Papanicolaou staining and sperm chromatin quality by aniline-blue staining. The left testes were fixed in Bouinś solution for histological examination and the end slices were stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E). The right testes were homogenized, and then TSN and DSP were calculated with an improved Neubauer haemocytometer and respective frames. Paired t-test, ANOVA, and Kruskal-Wallis tests were utilized for data analysis.

Results: Co-administration of DEHP and LC not only prevented significant gains in testicular weight, but also maintained the sperm's normal morphology and chromatin quality (p<0.05). In addition, LC recovered histological changes, TSN, DSP, and sperm count.

Conclusion: These results demonstrated that oral administration of LC partially or generally protects spermatogenesis from DEHP-toxicity in mice.

Keywords: L-carnitine; Spermatogenesis; Testis; di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate.

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Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1
Morphological abnormality of cauda epididymal sperm (Papanicolaou staining, ×1000 magnification).
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