Full Length Research Paper

Impact of organic hydroperoxides on rat testicular tissue and epididymal sperm

Yapo G. Aboua¹*, Stefan S. du Plessis² and Nicole Brooks¹

¹Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health and Wellness Sciences, Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Bellville 7535, South Africa.

²Division of Medical Physiology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Tygerberg 7505, South Africa.

*Corresponding author. E-mail: guillaboua@gmail.com. Tel.: +27 21 938 9388.

Fax: +27 21 938 9476.

Abbreviations: cHP, cumene hydroperoxide; GSH, glutathione; LPO, lipid peroxidation; MDA, malondialdehyde; OS, oxidative stress; RLU, relative luminescence units; ROS, reactive oxygen species; SOD, superoxide dismutase; tbHP, t-butyl hydroperoxide

Accepted 6 August, 2009

   Abstract

Organic hydroperoxides such as t-butyl hydroperoxide and cumene hydroperoxide have been implicated to cause oxidative stress leading to damage in membrane lipids, proteins, carbohydrates and DNA. This study was aimed to develop an in vivo animal model. The effects of hydroperoxides on testicular tissue and epididymal sperm were investigated. Male Wistar rats aged 10 - 12 weeks were randomly placed in groups and received standard rat chow and water ad libitum. Animals were injected intraperitoneally with saline (0.5 ml), t-butyl hydroperoxide (5, 10, 20 and 40 µM; 0.5 ml) or cumene hydroperoxide cHP (2.5, 5, 10 and 20 µM; 0.5 ml) over a 60 day period. It was found that cumene hydroperoxide cHP (10 and 20 µM) and t-butyl hydroperoxide tbHP (20 and 40 µM) led to significantly lower epididymal sperm concentrations and motility. Superoxide dismutase and glutathione activities were also higher with an accompanying increase in lipid peroxidation in both testicular tissue and epididymal sperm. It can be concluded that in vivo intraperitoneal administration of organic hydroperoxides negatively affect the male reproductive system. We have therefore successfully created an animal model to test the adverse effects of oxidative stress on male reproductive parameters, thereby, enabling us to study possible in vivo treatments.

Key words: Hydroperoxide, sperm, motility, lipid peroxidation, superoxide dismutase, glutathione.