Park Minji, Choi Yuri, Choi Hyeonhae, Yim Ju-Yearn, Roh Jaesook
Laboratory of Reproductive Endocrinology, Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology, College of Medicine, Hanyang University, Seoul 133-791, Republic of Korea.
Int J Endocrinol. 2015;2015:368475. doi: 10.1155/2015/368475. Epub 2015 Apr 23.
Prenatal caffeine exposure adversely affects the development of the reproductive organs of male rat offspring. Thus, it is conceivable that peripubertal caffeine exposure would also influence physiologic gonadal changes and function during this critical period for sexual maturation. This study investigated the impact of high doses of caffeine on the testes of prepubertal male rats. A total of 45 immature male rats were divided randomly into three groups: a control group and 2 groups fed 120 and 180 mg/kg/day of caffeine, respectively, via the stomach for 4 weeks. Caffeine caused a significant decrease in body weight gain, accompanied by proportional decreases in lean body mass and body fat. The caffeine-fed animals had smaller and lighter testes than those of the control that were accompanied by negative influences on the histologic parameters of the testes. In addition, stimulated-testosterone ex vivo production was reduced in Leydig cells retrieved from the caffeine-fed animals. Our results demonstrate that peripubertal caffeine consumption can interfere with the maturation and function of the testis, possibly by interrupting endogenous testosterone secretion and reducing the sensitivity of Leydig cells to gonadotrophic stimulation. In addition, we confirmed that pubertal administration of caffeine reduced testis growth and altered testis histomorphology.
孕期咖啡因暴露会对雄性大鼠后代的生殖器官发育产生不利影响。因此，可以想象青春期前后咖啡因暴露也会在这个性成熟的关键时期影响性腺的生理变化和功能。本研究调查了高剂量咖啡因对青春期前雄性大鼠睾丸的影响。总共45只未成熟雄性大鼠被随机分为三组：一组为对照组，另外两组分别通过灌胃给予120和180毫克/千克/天的咖啡因，持续4周。咖啡因导致体重增加显著减少，同时瘦体重和体脂也成比例减少。摄入咖啡因的动物睾丸比对照组更小、更轻，同时对睾丸的组织学参数产生负面影响。此外，从摄入咖啡因的动物体内获取的睾丸间质细胞中，体外刺激睾酮的生成减少。我们的结果表明，青春期前后摄入咖啡因可能会通过干扰内源性睾酮分泌以及降低睾丸间质细胞对促性腺激素刺激的敏感性，从而干扰睾丸的成熟和功能。此外，我们证实青春期给予咖啡因会减少睾丸生长并改变睾丸组织形态。
