Effect of alcoholic beverages on progeny and reproduction of mice

ABSTRACT Alcohol is the most commonly consumed substance in the world. The objective of this study was to evaluate the influence of alcoholic beverages on male reproduction and possible alterations in their offspring. The mice were divided into 4 groups: beer, wine, cachaça (a type of sugarcane rum), with ethanol concentrations of 1.9 g/kg, and control group treated with PBS. The treatment period was 35 days. The animals which received cachaça, demonstrated significant weight loss in the testes and epididymis. The alcoholic beverages promoted significant testosterone level and fertilization index diminution, and morphological alterations in the spermatozoa. The beer group presented decreased implantation sites and a high frequency of dominant lethal. The number of reabsorptions in the wine group was increased. The fermented beverages presented higher potential to induce visceral malformations, while the cachaça caused fetal skeletal malformations. The cachaça treated group presented a negative impact on semen quality and fertilization potential. The treatment with different alcoholic beverages, during spermatogenesis, demonstrated contrasting degrees of induction of toxic effects, interfering in a general aspect in male reproductive performance, fetal viability during intrauterine life, and birth defects. From the data, it is possible to infer that the distillated beverage caused more harmful effects to reproduction in this study.

Investigation of possible teratogenic effects in the offspring of mice exposed to methylphenidate during pregnancy.

Methylphenidate (MPH) is a central nervous system stimulant drug that increases concentration and energy level. The safety of MPH use during pregnancy is not well established. Considering the high rate of unplanned pregnancy among young women, potential for accidental exposure to MPH in early pregnancy is high. This study aimed to investigate if MPH administered during pregnancy would induce maternotoxicity, teratogenicity in mice, or both. Pregnant Swiss mice were treated with MPH (5 mg/kg, subcutaneously) or 0.9% saline (control group) from the 5th to the 17th day of pregnancy. In the MPH-treated group, a significant increase in the total number of resorptions with a consequent increase in post-implantation loss and a decrease in fetal viability were detected (all P < 0.05). A total of 91.43% of resorptions were classified as early resorptions. The group treated with MPH presented significant external (polydactyly P < 0.01), skeletal (incomplete ossification of the skull P < 0.01) and visceral (dilated ventricles P < 0.05) malformations. Behavioural effects (motor activity, memory of habituation and anxiety) were not observed in both male and female offspring evaluated at postnatal days 22, 35 and 75. The results suggest that MPH is an embryotoxic and teratogenic drug.