The reproductive system impairment of adult male rats induced by cocaine / 法医学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To investigate the reproductive system impairment induced by cocaine in adult male rats and the possible underlying mechanism.@*METHODS@#Thirty adult male rats were randomly divided into experimental and control groups, with 15 rats in each group. Rats of the experimental group were injected cocaine hydrochloride (15 mg/kg body weight) subcutaneously daily for four weeks. The weight of body and testis, as well as the level of serum hormone of the rats were examined. In addition, the apoptosis rate of testicular tissue by TUNEL and the expression of Fas gene in testicular tissue were examined by immunohistochemistry.@*RESULTS@#Compared with the control, the weight of testis in the cocaine exposed group decreased significantly (P<0.05), and the serum testosterone level decreased significantly (P<0.05). Moreover, both the apoptosis rate and the expression of Fas gene increased in the testicular tissue of rats in the cocaine exposed group in comparison to the control group (P<0.05). The apoptosis rate was significantly correlated with the expression of Fas gene (r=0.9012, P<0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Cocaine may cause reproductive system injury in adult male rats, and Fas-mediated apoptosis may be one of the functional mechanisms involved in the reproductive system injuried by cocaine.

Search and identification of spermatozoa and spermatids in the ejaculate of non-obstructive azoospermic patients

OBJECTIVE: To search and to identify spermatozoa and spermatids, present in the ejaculate of non-obstructive azoospermic patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: 27 patients, aged between 18 and 48 years, with initial diagnosis compatible with non-obstructive azoospermia, underwent up to 3 seminal samples, with assessment of macroscopic and microscopic parameters differentiated for each sample. In the first sample, 5 æL of semen were analyzed in a Horwell chamber in order to assess the presence or absence of spermatozoa. The procedure was repeated with 2 other aliquots. In the absence of spermatozoa, the entire sample was transferred to a conic tube and following centrifugation the sediment was freshly analyzed. The second seminal sample was collected only when no spermatozoa were found in the first sample and the research was performed in the same way. In cases where spermatozoa were not seen, the sample was centrifuged and the obtained sediment was stained by the panoptic method and observed under common light microscopy (1250X). The third seminal sample was collected only in cases when patients had not shown spermatozoa in the first and second seminal samples. RESULTS: 4/27 (14.8 percent) patients presented spermatozoa in the first seminal sample and 6/23 (26.1 percent), in the second seminal sample. No spermatozoa were seen in the third sample, however, 11/17 (64.7 percent) presented spermatids. CONCLUSION: In clinical situations where the initial diagnosis is non-obstructive azoospermia, one single routine seminal analysis is not enough to confirm this diagnosis and the analysis of the centrifuged sediment can have relevant clinical consequences. Among patients considered non-obstructive azoospermic, when duly assessed, 37 percent presented spermatozoa and 64.7 percent, spermatids.