Testosterone mediated partial recovery of carboplatin induced reproductive toxicity in male wistar rats

The present study aimed to investigate the possible interference of carboplatin on spermatogenisis and to investigate the protective role of testosterone against carboplatin mediated impairment of spermatogenisis. Rats were divided into three groups consisting of eight animals in each group. The rats in the first group were served as control and received 0.9% of normal saline only. The rats in the second group were received carboplatin (10 mg/kg body wt) only. The rats in the third group were received carboplatin (10 mg/kg body wt) and testosterone (4.16 mg/kg body wt) respectively. Injections were given intra-peritoneally to rats on 1st, 3rd and 5th day of experimentation. On 45th day of experiment, animals were sacrificed by cervical dislocation. Epididymal sperm counts and evaluation of sperm motility were done by the method of Belsey (1980). Sperm viability was determined by the method of Talbot and Chacon (1981) and the percent of sperm coiling was determined by the method of Jeyendran (1984). 3β-hydroxy steroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD; EC.1.1.1.51) and 17β-hydroxy steroid dehydrogenase (17β- HSD; EC.1.1.1.64) were assayed by the method of Berg Meyer (1974). The study shows that carboplatin treatment has led to many reproductive abnormalities. Testosterone administration along with carboplatin, caused partial restoration of reproductive abnormalities in experimental rats.