Bee bread mitigates downregulation of steroidogenic genes, decreased spermatogenesis, and epididymal oxidative stress in male rats fed with high-fat diet.

The pituitary-gonadal axis plays an important role in steroidogenesis and spermatogenesis, and by extension, fertility. The aim of this study was to investigate the protective role of bee bread, a natural bee product, against obesity-induced decreases in steroidogenesis and spermatogenesis. Thirty-two adult male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing between 200 and 300 g were divided into four groups (n = 8/group), namely: normal control (NC), high-fat diet (HFD), HFD plus bee bread administered concurrently for 12 wk (HFD + B), HFD plus orlistat administered concurrently for 12 wk (HFD + O) groups. Bee bread (0.5 g/kg) or orlistat (10 mg/kg/day) was suspended in distilled water and given by oral gavage daily for 12 wk. Levels of follicle-stimulating hormone, luteinizing hormone, testosterone, and adiponectin, as well as sperm count, motility, viability, normal morphology, and epididymal antioxidants decreased, whereas levels of leptin, malondialdehyde, and sperm nDNA fragmentation increased significantly in the HFD group relative to the NC group. There were significant decreases in the testicular mRNA transcript levels of androgen receptor, luteinizing hormone receptor, steroidogenic acute regulatory protein, cytochrome P450 enzyme, 3ß-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD) and 17ß-HSD in the testes of the HFD group. Furthermore, mount, intromission and ejaculatory latencies increased, and penile cGMP level decreased significantly in the HFD group. Supplementation with bee bread significantly reduced leptin level and increased adiponectin level, enhanced sperm parameters and reduced sperm nDNA fragmentation, upregulated the levels of steroidogenic genes and proteins in HFD-induced obese male rats. Bee bread improved steroidogenesis and spermatogenesis by upregulating steroidogenic genes. Therefore, bee bread may be considered as a potential supplementation to protect against infertility in overweight men or men with obesity.NEW & NOTEWORTHY The high-fat diet utilized in the present study induced obesity in the male rats. Bee bread supplementation mitigated impaired steroidogenesis, spermatogenesis, mating behavior, and fertility potential by counteracting the downregulation of steroidogenic genes, thus increasing testosterone levels and suppressing epididymal oxidative stress. These benefits may be due to the abundance of phenolic and flavonoid compounds in bee bread.

The Impact of Plant Bioactive Compounds on Aging and Fertility of Diverse Organisms: A Review.

It is expected that in 2050, there will be more than 20% of senior citizens aged over 60 years worldwide. Such alarming statistics require immediate attention to improve the health of the aging population. Since aging is closely related to the loss of antioxidant defense mechanisms, this situation eventually leads to numerous health problems, including fertility reduction. Furthermore, plant extracts have been used in traditional medicine as potent antioxidant sources. Although many experiments had reported the impact of various bioactive compounds on aging or fertility, there is a lack of review papers that combine both subjects. In this review, we have collected and discussed various bioactive compounds from 26 different plant species known to affect both longevity and fertility. These compounds, including phenolics and terpenes, are mostly involved in the antioxidant defense mechanisms of diverse organisms such as rats, mites, fruit flies, roundworms, and even roosters. A human clinical trial should be considered in the future to measure the effects of these bioactive compounds on human health and longevity. Ultimately, these plant-derived compounds could be developed into health supplements or potential medical drugs to ensure a healthy aging population.

Monosodium glutamate daily oral supplementation: study of its effects on male reproductive system on rat model.

Monosodium glutamate (MSG) is widely used in food preparation industry and has been consumed regularly. Previous studies had reported on effects of MSG when given at extremely high dosages, the results are not applicable to human equivalent intake. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the effect of MSG on sperm quality and changes in reproductive organs of adult male rats when taken at average human daily intake (ADI). Twenty-four adult male rats were randomly assigned into three groups; NC (Normal control), MSG60 and MSG120 where MSG was given orally at 60 mg/kg and 120 mg/kg to each respective group. All treatments were conducted for 28 consecutive days. MSG at estimated ADI of 120 mg/kg body weight resulted in a significant drop in sperm quality (p < 0.05) when compared to both control and MSG60 groups. A significant decrease in the weight of reproductive organs was also apparent (p < 0.05). Moreover, oxidative status evaluation showed that treatment of MSG induces oxidative stress in the testis, more severely at a dose of 120 mg/kg body weight. These findings are supported by alterations in the observed histology of reproductive organs. This study shows that an intake dose of 120 mg/kg body weight MSG could cause significant damage to the reproductive system. Abbreviations: MSG: Monosodium glutamate; ADI: average daily intake; PUFA: polyunsaturated fatty acid; FSH: follicle stimulating hormone; LH: luteinizing hormone; TCA: tricarbocylic acid; PF: prostatic fluid.

Cytotoxicity and Toxicity Evaluation of Xanthone Crude Extract on Hypoxic Human Hepatocellular Carcinoma and Zebrafish (Danio rerio) Embryos.

Xanthone is an organic compound mostly found in mangosteen pericarp and widely known for its anti-proliferating effect on cancer cells. In this study, we evaluated the effects of xanthone crude extract (XCE) and α-mangostin (α-MG) on normoxic and hypoxic human hepatocellular carcinoma (HepG2) cells and their toxicity towards zebrafish embryos. XCE was isolated using a mixture of acetone and water (80:20) and verified via high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Both XCE and α-MG showed higher anti-proliferation effects on normoxic HepG2 cells compared to the control drug, 5-fluorouracil (IC50 = 50.23 ± 1.38, 8.39 ± 0.14, and 143.75 ± 15.31 µg/mL, respectively). In hypoxic conditions, HepG2 cells were two times less sensitive towards XCE compared to normoxic HepG2 cells (IC50 = 109.38 ± 1.80 µg/mL) and three times less sensitive when treated with >500 µg/mL 5-fluorouracil (5-FU). A similar trend was seen with the α-MG treatment on hypoxic HepG2 cells (IC50 = 10.11 ± 0.05 µg/mL) compared to normoxic HepG2 cells. However, at a concentration of 12.5 µg/mL, the α-MG treatment caused tail-bend deformities in surviving zebrafish embryos, while no malformation was observed when embryos were exposed to XCE and 5-FU treatments. Our study suggests that both XCE and α-MG are capable of inhibiting HepG2 cell proliferation during normoxic and hypoxic conditions, more effectively than 5-FU. However, XCE is the preferred option as no malformation was observed in surviving zebrafish embryos and it is more cost efficient than α-MG.