Department of Veterinary Pathology, Key Laboratory of Zoonosis of Ministry of Agriculture, China Agricultural University, Beijing.
Braz J Med Biol Res. 2011 Dec;44(12):1243-50. doi: 10.1590/s0100-879x2011007500147. Epub 2011 Nov 4.
To explore whether an environment of weightlessness will cause damage to the reproductive system of animals, we used the tail-suspension model to simulate microgravity, and investigated the effect of microgravity on the tissue structure and function of the testis in sexually mature male rats. Forty-eight male Wistar rats weighing 200-250 g were randomly assigned to three groups (N = 16 each): control, tail traction, and tail suspension. After the rats were suspended for 7 or 14 days, morphological changes of testis were evaluated by histological and electron microscopic methods. The expression of HSP70, bax/bcl-2 and AR (androgen receptor) in testis was measured by immunohistochemistry. Obvious pathological lesions were present in the testis after the rats were suspended for 7 or 14 days. We detected overexpression of HSP70 and an increase of apoptotic cells, which may have contributed to the injury to the testis. The expression of AR, as an effector molecule in the testis, was significantly decreased in the suspended groups compared to control (P < 0.01). We also observed that, with a longer time of suspension, the aforementioned pathological damage became more serious and some pathological injury to the testis was irreversible. The results demonstrated that a short- or medium-term microgravity environment could lead to severe irreversible damage to the structure of rat testis.
为了探索失重环境是否会对动物的生殖系统造成损害，我们采用尾部悬吊模型模拟微重力，研究了微重力对性成熟雄性大鼠睾丸组织结构和功能的影响。将 48 只体重为 200-250g 的雄性 Wistar 大鼠随机分为三组（每组 16 只）：对照组、尾部牵引组和尾部悬吊组。大鼠悬吊 7 或 14 天后，采用组织学和电镜方法评价睾丸的形态变化。采用免疫组织化学法检测睾丸中 HSP70、bax/bcl-2 和 AR（雄激素受体）的表达。大鼠悬吊 7 或 14 天后，睾丸出现明显的病理损伤。我们检测到 HSP70 的过度表达和凋亡细胞的增加，这可能导致了睾丸损伤。与对照组相比，悬吊组睾丸中 AR 的表达（作为睾丸中的效应分子）明显降低（P<0.01）。我们还观察到，随着悬吊时间的延长，上述病理损伤变得更加严重，一些睾丸的病理损伤是不可逆转的。结果表明，短期或中期的微重力环境可导致大鼠睾丸结构严重且不可逆转的损伤。
