Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Da-An Women and Children Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan.
Division of Urology, Department of Surgery, Chi-Mei Medical Center, Address: No. 901, Zhonghua Rd, Yongkang District, Tainan, 710, Taiwan.
Sci Rep. 2021 Feb 11;11(1):3539. doi: 10.1038/s41598-021-83121-3.
The association of exertional heat stroke (EHS) and testicular morphological changes affecting sperm quality, as well as the association of EHS and hypothalamic changes affecting sexual behavior, has yet to be elucidated. This study aimed to elucidate the effects of EHS on fertility, erectile function, and testicular morphology in male rats. Animals were exercised at higher room temperature (36 ℃ relative humidity 50%) to induce EHS, characterized by excessive hyperthermia, neurobehavioral deficits, hypothalamic cell damage, systemic inflammation, coagulopathy, and multiple organ injury. In particular, EHS animals had erectile dysfunction (as determined by measuring the changes of intracavernosal pressure and mean arterial pressure in response to electrical stimulation of cavernous nerves). Rats also displayed testicular temperature disruption, poorly differentiated seminiferous tubules, impaired sperm quality, and atrophy of interstitial Leydig cells, Sertoli cells, and peri-tubular cells in the testicular tissues accompanied by no spermatozoa and broken cells with pyknosis in their seminal vesicle and prostatitis. These EHS effects were still observed after 3 days following EHS onset, at least. Our findings provide a greater understanding of the effect of experimentally induced EHS on masculine sexual behavior, fertility, stress hormones, and morphology of both testis and prostate.
运动性热射病（EHS）与睾丸形态变化影响精子质量之间的关系，以及 EHS 与影响性行为的下丘脑变化之间的关系，尚未阐明。本研究旨在阐明 EHS 对雄性大鼠生育力、勃起功能和睾丸形态的影响。动物在较高的室温（36℃，相对湿度 50%）下运动以诱发 EHS，其特征为过度高热、神经行为缺陷、下丘脑细胞损伤、全身炎症、凝血功能障碍和多器官损伤。特别是，EHS 动物存在勃起功能障碍（通过测量电刺激海绵体神经时海绵体内压和平均动脉压的变化来确定）。大鼠的睾丸温度也出现紊乱，生精小管分化不良，精子质量受损，间质莱迪希细胞、支持细胞和睾丸组织的小管周围细胞萎缩，精囊中没有精子，前列腺炎中出现固缩的破碎细胞。至少在 EHS 发病后 3 天，仍观察到这些 EHS 影响。我们的研究结果提供了对实验性诱导的 EHS 对雄性性行为、生育力、应激激素以及睾丸和前列腺形态的影响的更深入理解。
