Huang Xulai, Gao Yanan, Zhang Yangdong, Wang Jiaqi, Zheng Nan
Key Laboratory of Quality & Safety Control for Milk and Dairy Products, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China.
Laboratory of Quality and Safety Risk Assessment for Dairy Products, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Institute of Animal Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100193, China.
Int J Mol Sci. 2023 Sep 10;24(18):13922. doi: 10.3390/ijms241813922.
Strontium (Sr) is an essential trace element in the human body and plays an important role in regulating male reproductive health. Recent studies have shown that gut flora plays a key role in maintaining spermatogenesis, as well as testicular health, through the gut-testis axis. At present, it is unclear whether gut microbiota can mediate the effects of Sr on sperm quality, and what the underlying mechanisms may be. We investigated the effects of different concentrations of strontium chloride (SrCl) solutions (0, 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg BW) on reproductive function and gut microbiota in male Wistar rats (6-8 weeks, 250 ± 20 g). All the animals were euthanized after 37 days of treatment. The Sr-50 group significantly increased sperm concentration, sperm motility, and sperm viability in rats. After Sr treatment, serum and testicular testosterone (T) and Sr levels increased in a dose-dependent manner with increasing Sr concentration. At the same time, we also found that testicular marker enzymes (ACP, LDH) and testosterone marker genes (, , and ) increased significantly in varying degrees after Sr treatment, while serum NO levels decreased significantly in a dose-dependent manner. Further investigation of intestinal flora showed that SrCl affected the composition of gut microbiome, but did not affect the richness and diversity of gut microbiota. Sr treatment reduced the number of bacteria with negative effects on reproductive health, such as , , , , , and , and added bacteria with negative effects on reproductive health, such as . To further explore the Sr and the relationship between the gut microbiota, we conducted a Spearman correlation analysis, and the results showed that the gut microbiota was closely correlated with Sr content in serum and testicular tissue, sex hormone levels, and testicular marker enzymes. Additionally, gut microbiota can also regulate each other and jointly maintain the homeostasis of the body's internal environment. However, we found no significant correlation between intestinal flora and sperm quality in this study, which may be related to the small sample size of our 16S rDNA sequencing. In conclusion, the Sr-50 group significantly increased T levels and sperm quality, and improved the levels of testicular marker enzymes and testosterone marker genes in the rats. Sr treatment altered the gut flora of the rats. However, further analysis of the effects of gut microbiota in mediating the effects of SrCl on male reproductive function is needed. This study may improve the current understanding of the interaction between Sr, reproductive health, and gut microbiota, providing evidence for the development of Sr-rich foods and the prevention of male fertility decline.
锶(Sr)是人体必需的微量元素,在调节男性生殖健康方面发挥着重要作用。最近的研究表明,肠道菌群通过肠-睾轴在维持精子发生以及睾丸健康方面起着关键作用。目前,尚不清楚肠道微生物群是否能介导锶对精子质量的影响以及潜在机制可能是什么。我们研究了不同浓度的氯化锶(SrCl)溶液(0、50、100和200mg/kg体重)对雄性Wistar大鼠(6 - 8周龄,250±20g)生殖功能和肠道微生物群的影响。治疗37天后对所有动物实施安乐死。Sr-50组显著提高了大鼠的精子浓度、精子活力和精子存活率。Sr处理后,血清和睾丸中的睾酮(T)以及Sr水平随着Sr浓度的增加呈剂量依赖性升高。同时,我们还发现Sr处理后睾丸标记酶(ACP、LDH)和睾酮标记基因(……此处原文缺失具体基因名称)不同程度地显著增加,而血清NO水平呈剂量依赖性显著降低。对肠道菌群的进一步研究表明,SrCl影响肠道微生物组的组成,但不影响肠道微生物群的丰富度和多样性。Sr处理减少了对生殖健康有负面影响的细菌数量,如……此处原文缺失具体细菌名称,以及添加了对生殖健康有负面影响的细菌,如……此处原文缺失具体细菌名称。为了进一步探究Sr与肠道微生物群之间的关系,我们进行了Spearman相关性分析,结果表明肠道微生物群与血清和睾丸组织中的Sr含量、性激素水平以及睾丸标记酶密切相关。此外,肠道微生物群之间也能相互调节,共同维持机体内部环境的稳态。然而,在本研究中我们未发现肠道菌群与精子质量之间存在显著相关性,这可能与我们16S rDNA测序的样本量较小有关。总之,Sr-50组显著提高了大鼠的T水平和精子质量,并改善了睾丸标记酶和睾酮标记基因的水平。Sr处理改变了大鼠的肠道菌群。然而,需要进一步分析肠道微生物群在介导SrCl对雄性生殖功能影响方面的作用。本研究可能会增进目前对Sr、生殖健康和肠道微生物群之间相互作用的理解,为富含Sr的食物开发以及预防男性生育能力下降提供依据。
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