Facility for Risk Assessment and Intervention Studies, Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, S.A.S. Nagar, Punjab, India.
J Biochem Mol Toxicol. 2020 Oct;34(10):e22549. doi: 10.1002/jbt.22549. Epub 2020 Jul 1.
Zinc (Zn) plays an important role in maintaining the process of spermatogenesis and reproductive health. Bisphenol A (BPA), an endocrine disrupting chemical is known to be a reproductive toxicant in different animal models. The present study was designed to study the effect of two of the utmost determinative factors (Zn deficient condition and influence of toxicant BPA) on germ cell growth and overall male reproductive health in the testis, epididymis, and sperm using (a) biochemical, (b) antioxidant, (c) cellular damage, (d) apoptosis, and (e) protein expression measurements. Rats were divided into Control (normal feed and water), BPA (100 mg/kg/d), zinc deficient diet (ZDD; fed with ZDD), and BPA + ZDD for 8 weeks. Body and organ weights, sperm motility and counts, and sperm head morphology were evaluated. The histology of testes, epididymides, and prostate was investigated. Testicular deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) damage was evaluated by Halo and Comet assay, apoptosis of sperm and testes were quantified by TUNEL assay. Serum protein electrophoretic patterns and testicular protein expressions such as Nrf-2, catalase, PCNA, and Keap1 were analyzed by Western blot analysis. The results showed that BPA significantly increased the testicular, epididymal, and prostrate toxicity in dietary Zn deficient condition due to testicular hypozincemia, hypogonadism, increased cellular and DNA damage, apoptosis, as well as perturbations in protein expression.
锌（Zn）在维持精子发生和生殖健康过程中起着重要作用。双酚 A（BPA）是一种内分泌干扰化学物质，已知在不同的动物模型中是一种生殖毒物。本研究旨在研究两个最决定性因素（缺锌条件和有毒物质 BPA 的影响）对睾丸、附睾和精子中生殖细胞生长和整体男性生殖健康的影响，采用（a）生化、（b）抗氧化、（c）细胞损伤、（d）细胞凋亡和（e）蛋白质表达测量。大鼠分为对照组（正常饲料和水）、BPA（100mg/kg/d）、缺锌饮食组（ZDD；用 ZDD 喂养）和 BPA+ZDD 组，喂养 8 周。评估体重和器官重量、精子活力和计数以及精子头形态。研究了睾丸、附睾和前列腺的组织学。通过 Halo 和彗星试验评估睾丸 DNA 损伤，通过 TUNEL 试验定量精子和睾丸的细胞凋亡。通过 Western blot 分析分析血清蛋白电泳图谱和睾丸蛋白表达，如 Nrf-2、过氧化氢酶、PCNA 和 Keap1。结果表明，BPA 在膳食缺锌条件下显著增加了睾丸、附睾和前列腺的毒性，这是由于睾丸低锌血症、性腺功能减退、细胞和 DNA 损伤增加、细胞凋亡以及蛋白质表达紊乱所致。
