Effects of Herba Cistanches on testosterone content, substance metabolism and exercise capacity in rats after exercise training / 中国药学杂志

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE: To study the effects of Herba Cistanches on the content of testosterone, substance metabolism and the ability of resisting exercise-induced fatigue of rats. METHODS: High-intensity endurance trained rats were used as the model. Sixty-five 7-week-old male Wistar rats were divided into 4 groups, with 15 in each group still ig administration of water group (C group), still igadministration of Cistanche group (M group), exercise ig administration of water group (T group), and exercise ig administration of Cistanche group (TM group). Gavage was done using professional device once a day. M and TM group were dosed at 6.01 g · kg-1 with volume of 5 mL · kg-1, while C and T group were given saline of the same volume. After 42 d exhaustive swimming training, body weight, swimming time, serum testosterone, and other biochemical markers were measured. RESULTS: The body weights and swimming time of the rats in TM group were greater than those in T group (P<0.05, P<0.01). Exhaustive swimming led to decreased serum testosterone. The serum testosterone levels of T group decreased by 40.53% (P<0.01) compared with C group. Compared with T group, the serum testosterone levels of TM group increased by 44.35% (P<0.01). The serum corticosterone levels in each group showed no significant differences, and the serum testosterone/corticosterone ratios changed in line with changes of testosterone. Liver glycogen and muscle glycogen reserves failed. Compared with C group, T group's glycogen decreased by 25.85% (P<0.01), and muscle glycogen decreased by 44. 94% (P<0.01). Compared with T group, TM group had 19.41% higher liver glycogen (P<0.05) and 58.05% higher muscle glycogen (P<0.01); FSH had no significant change; compared with C group, the blood urea of T group increased by 59.30% (P<0.01), and the hemoglobin decreased by 28.72% (P<0.01); compared with T group, TM group had 20.70%) lower blood urea (P<0.05) and 24.22% higher hemoglobin (P<0.05). CONCLUSION: Cistanche deserticola Y.C. Ma can reduce the impact of high-intensity exercise on serum testosterone, and maintain it at normal physiological level. It can promote protein synthesis, inhibit amino acid and protein degradation, and increase hemoglobin and glycogen reserves in rats receiving exercise training.