Subchronic Toxic Effects of Exposure in Combination to Dibutyl Phthalate and Benzo[a]pyrene on Spermatogenesis in Male Rats / 环境与健康杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To explore the combined effects of subchronic exposure of dibutyl phthalate (DBP) and benzo [a] pyrene (B[a]P) on spermatogenesis in male rats. Methods A total of 32 male Sprague-Dawley rats aged 4-5 weeks were randomly divided into 4 groups and treated respectively as follows, corn oil, 1 mg/kg of B[a]P, 50 mg/kg of DBP, 1 mg/kg of B[a]P+50 mg/kg of DBP , the gavage was used every other day, for 90 days. The rats were sacrificed and the testes, epididymis, livers and other visceral organs were collected, and the organ coefficients were calculated. Flow cytometry (FCM) was used to detect changes of cell cycle. The testes were prepared for histological examination, and cauda epididymides were isolated for the determination of progressive motility and density of stored spermatozoa. The blood samples were collected to assess the effect of B[a]P and DBP on plasma testosterone and luteinizing hormone (LH) concentrations with chemiluminescence immumo-assay. Results The percentage of progressively motile stored spermatozoa and stored sperm density were not changed when exposure to B[a]P and DBP. The exposure alone and combined to B[a]P and DBP caused a reduction in mean tubular area compared with the control (P