| Disease | DECREASED SPERM CONCENTRATIONS IN EPIDIDYMAL AND TESTICULAR SPERM SUSPENSIONS ARE REPORTED. FOR THE EPIDIDYMIS, THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN ON THE SAME PREPARATION AS USED FOR THE MOTILITY DETERMINATIONS.
IT IS UNCLEAR HOW THEY GOT THE TESTIS COUNT SINCE SUPPOSEDLY THE RIGHT TESTIS OF EACH RAT WAS PUT INTO BOUIN'S FLUID FOR HISTOLOGY AND THE LEFT TESTIS OF EACH WAS FROZEN FOR BIOCHEMICAL DETERMINATIONS.
IT IS ALSO REPORTED THAT THERE WERE DECREASES IN TESTICULAR WEIGHT, SEMINIFEROUS TUBULE DIAMETER, NUMBERS OF SPERMATIDES AND POSSIBLY SECONDARY SPERMATOCYTES(BUT NOT OF THE EARLY STAGES).
ALSO, DECREASES WERE SEEN IN WEIGHTS OF ANDROGEN-DEPENDENT ORGANS AND IN NUMBERS AND NUCLEAR DIAMETERS OF ANDROGEN-SECRETING CELLS(LEYDIG CELLS), BIOCHEMICAL CHANGES THAT SUGGEST ASSOCIATION WITH A DECREASE IN ANDORGEN PRODUCTION.
ALSO, THERE WAS AN INCREASE IN DEGENERATING CELLS IN THE TESTICULAR INTERSTITIUM. POSSIBLE EXPLANATIONS COULD BE A TOXIC EFFECT ON THE TESTIS AND/OR A DECREASE IN GONADOTROPIC STIMULATION OF THE TESTES, BUT NO HORMONAL MEASUREMENTS WERE DONE.
THEREFORE, WHICH IF EITHER, MIGHT BE TRUE, IS UNKNOWN. |