| Disease | FOUND BY SERENDIPITY TO CAUSE INFERTILITY IN MALES INGESTING IMPURE COTTONSEED OIL.
BEFORE 1955 IN HUPEI PROVINCE, A MALADY KNOWN AS "DISEASE OF BURNING SENSATION" WAS NOTED. SYMPTOMS OF THE DISEASE WERE A BURNING FEELING IN THE SKIN,LACK OF PERSPIRATION AND DAMAGE TO THE REPRODUCTIVE SYSTEM. THE ETIOLOGY WAS UNKNOWN.
FACTORS SUCH AS GEOGRAPHICAL ENVIRONMENT, CLIMATE, OCCUPATION, LIVING HABITS,ETC. WERE RULED OUT AS THE CAUSE OF THE DISEASE, AS WELL AS INFECTION, MALNUTRITION OR INTOXICATION BY AGRICULTURAL CHEMICALS.
IN DISCUSSIONS WITH PATIENTS AND MEDICAL SPECIALISTS IT WAS NOTED THAT A LARGE AMOUNT OF COTTONSEED OIL WAS CONSUMED BY THE LOCAL PEOPLE IN THEIR COOKING.
THE DISEASE USUALLY OCCURRED IN AREAS WHERE MOTOR-DRIVEN COMPRESSORS WERE EMPLOYED TO PREPARE THE OIL. THIS LED TO A COMPARISON OF THE TOXICITIES OF COTTONSEED OILS PREPARED BY THE "TRADITIONAL" WAY AND THE "IMPROVED" OR "MODERNIZED" WAY.
IT WAS FOUND THAT THE OIL PREPARED BY THE "MODERN" WAY WAS MORE TOXIC AND HAD A GOSSYPOL CONTENT AS HIGH AS 1.1%. IT WAS FOUND THAT INGESION OF ABOUT 4 POUNDS OF THIS TYPE OF COTTONSEED OIL,IN A 3 MONTH PERIOD WOULD RESULT IN THE "DISEASE".
IT WAS THE NOTED IN CLINICS OF AREAS WHERE THE "DISEASE" WAS PREVALENT,THAT MALE PATIENTS WERE INCAPABLE OF PRODUCING NORMAL AMOUNTS OF HEALTHY SPERM. THIS SUGGESTED THAT GOSSYPOL MIGHT BE THE RESPONSIBLE AGENT.
CLINICAL TRIALS WERE CARRIED OUT ON GOSSYPOL AND IT WAS FOUND TO BE ORALLY ACTIVE IN REDUCING FERTILITY OF MALES. |