PURPOSE Exposure of male reproductive organs to 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-Dioxin (TCDD) has been reported to cause developmental changes. In this study, we evaluated the effects of in utero TCDD exposure on male reproductive development. MATERIALS AND METHODS Pregnant C57BL/6 mice were administered a single intraperitoneal injection of TCDD (1 microg/kg) on gestation day (GD) 15. The offsp...

Lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is associated with adverse developmental outcomes including embryonic resorption, fetal death, congenital teratogenesis and fetal growth retardation. Here, we explored the effects of maternal LPS exposure during pregnancy on testicular development, steroidogenesis and spermatogenesis in male offspring. The pregnant mice were intraperitoneally injected with LPS (50 µg/kg...

Di(n-butyl) phthalate (DBP), a widely used plasticizer suspected of having estrogenic properties, was investigated for its effects on the prenatal and early neonatal development of the reproductive tract. Pregnant CD rats (n = 10) were given DBP at 0, 250, 500, or 750 mg/kg/day (p.o.) throughout pregnancy and lactation until their offspring were at postnatal day 20. Maternal body weights throug...

Background: Studies showed controversial results regarding the effect of statins on fertility parameters. Several studies present evidence that statins have deleterious effects, others failed to prove these effects. Aim: To investigate the effects of rosuvastatin and atorvastatin on selected fertility parameters in male and female mice, and to find out their effects on first and second generati...

OBJECTIVES The aim of this study was to evaluate the oxidative status and DNA integrity in testes of wistar rat offspring exposed to omega-9 monounsaturated (MUFA) at different times of late organogenesis. MATERIALS AND METHODS Sixty female rats were divided into six groups of 10 animals. The first group served as control and received the drug vehicle, olive oil (1 ml/kg/day). The second, thi...

Pregnant mice were given a single dose (10 mug/g body weight) of diethylstilbestrol (DES) on Days 7 to 19, which correspond to the first to fifth lunar months in humans, after the authors, using a 14C-labeled compound, confirmed easy placental penetration by DES. Treatment with DES on Days 15 to 19 resulted in the induction of persistent urogenital sinus (15.8 to 92.5%) and hypertrophy of the p...

background: phthalate esters have been shown to cause reproductive toxicity in both developing and adult animals. objective: this study was designed to assess long-term effects of maternal exposure to di (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (dehp) on reproductive ability of both neonatal and adult male offspring. materials and methods: 60 female rats randomly divided in four equal groups; vehicle control a...

Testes mass is a key factor in male reproductive success and is potentially exposed to so-called 'parasitic castration'. This is the result of the direct destruction or alteration of reproductive cell lineages (parasitic castration sensu stricto), or the indirect detrimental effects - for example, via body condition - on the ability of progenitors to produce or rear offspring (parasitic castrat...

The in vitro derivation and propagation of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) from pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) is a key goal in reproductive science. We show here that when aggregated with embryonic testicular somatic cells (reconstituted testes), primordial germ cell-like cells (PGCLCs) induced from mouse embryonic stem cells differentiate into spermatogonia-like cells in vitro and are expanda...

2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and dioxin-like compounds are widely encountered toxic substances suspected of interfering with the endocrine systems of humans and wildlife, and of contributing to the loss of fertility. In this study, we determined the changes in testicular gene expression caused by in utero exposure to TCDD along with the intra-testicular testosterone levels, epidid...