Abstract:An aqueous extract of Eurycoma longifolia (Tongkat Ali; TA) roots is traditionally used to enhance male sexuality. Because previous studies are limited to only few sperm parameters or testosterone concentration, this study investigated the in vivo effects of TA on body and organ weight as well as functional sperm parameters in terms of safety and efficacy in the management of male infertility. Forty-two male rats were divided into a control, low-dose (200 mg kg -1 BW) and high-dose (800 mg kg -1 BW) group (n = 14). Rats were force-fed for 14 days and then sacrificed. Total body and organ weights of the prostate, testes, epididymides, gastrocnemius muscle and the omentum were recorded. Moreover, testosterone concentration, sperm concentration, motility, velocity, vitality, acrosome reaction and mitochondrial membrane potential (MMP) were assessed. Whilst TA decreased BW by 5.7% (P = 0.0276) and omentum fat by 31.9% (P = 0.0496), no changes in organ weights were found for the prostate, testes and epididymides. Testosterone con-centration increased by 30.2% (P = 0.0544). Muscle weight also increased, yet not significantly. Whilst sperm concentration, total and progressive motility and vitality increased significantly, MMP improved markedly (P = 0.0765) by 25.1%. Because no detrimental effect could be observed, TA appears safe for possible treatment of male infertility and ageing male problems.

Eurycoma longifolia (Tongkat ali; TA) is a Malaysian shrub used to treat various illnesses including male infertility. Considering that TA is used to improve male fertility and no report regarding its safety has been published, this study investigated the effects of TA extract on various sperm functions. Semen samples of 27 patients and 13 donors were divided into two groups, washed and swim-up spermatozoa, and incubated with different concentrations of TA (1, 10, 20, 100, 2000 μg ml(-1) ) for 1 h at 37 °C. A sample without addition of TA served as control. For washed spermatozoa, significant dose-dependent trends were found for vitality, total motility, acrosome reaction and reactive oxygen species-positive spermatozoa. However, these trends were only significant if the highest concentrations were included in the calculation. Contrary, the increase in the percentage of acrosome-reacted spermatozoa with increasing TA concentrations is very significant (P < 0.0001), and a significant difference (P = 0.0069) to the control could even be recorded at 20 μg TA per ml. For swim-up spermatozoa, no trend could be observed. Results indicate that the TA extract has no deleterious effects on sperm functions at therapeutically used concentrations (<2.5 μg ml(-1) ). However, at very high concentrations, TA may have harmful effects in vitro.

A Coulomb-excitation reorientation-effect measurement using the TIGRESS γ−ray spectrometer at the TRI-UMF/ISAC II facility has permitted the determination of the 2 + 1 ||Ê2 || 2 + 1 diagonal matrix element in 12 C from particle−γ coincidence data and state-of-the-art no-core shell model calculations of the nuclear polarizability. The nuclear polarizability for the ground and first-excited (2 + 1 ) states in 12 C have been calculated using chiral NN N 4 LO500 and NN+3NF350 interactions, which show convergence and agreement with photo-absorption cross-section data. Predictions show a change in the nuclear polarizability with a substantial increase between the ground state and first excited 2 + 1 state at 4.439 MeV. The polarizability of the 2 + 1 state is introduced into the current and previous Coulombexcitation reorientation-effect analyses of 12 C. Spectroscopic quadrupole moments of Q S (2 + 1 ) = +0.053(44) eb and Q S (2 + 1 ) = +0.08(3) eb are determined, respectively, yielding a weighted average of Q S (2 + 1 ) = +0.071(25) eb, in agreement with recent ab initio calculations. The present measurement confirms that the 2 + 1 state of 12 C is oblate and emphasizes the important role played by the nuclear polarizability in Coulomb-excitation studies of light nuclei.

SummaryCissampelos capensis is commonly known by the Afrikaans name 'dawidjies' or 'dawidjieswortel'. C. capensis is the most important and best-known medicinal plant of the family Menispermaceae used by the Khoisan and other rural people in the western regions of South Africa. Among numerous other ailments, it is traditionally taken to treat male fertility problems. Yet, no studies have investigated the effects of this plant or its extracts on human spermatozoa. The aim of study was to investigate the effects of C. capensis extracts on sperm function. A total of 77 semen samples were collected. Spermatozoa were washed with HTF-BSA medium and incubated with different concentrations of C. capensis (0, 0.05, 0.5, 5, 50, 200 lg ml À1 ) for 1 h at 37°C. Sperm motility, vitality, acrosome reaction, reactive oxygen species (ROS), capacitation, Annexin V binding, DNA fragmentation and mitochondrial membrane potential (Dw m ) were determined. While viability, Annexin V positivity and Dw m were not affected, the percentages of ROS-positive, TUNEL-positive, capacitated and hyperactivated spermatozoa increased significantly and dose-dependently. It is concluded that the alkaloids present in the extract of C. capansis rhizomes triggered sperm intrinsic superoxide production leading to sperm capacitation and DNA fragmentation.

A comprehensive systematic study is made for the collective β and γ bands in even-even isotopes with neutron numbers N = 88 to 92 and proton numbers Z = 62 (Sm) to 70 (Yb). Data, including excitation energies, B(E 0) and B(E 2) values, and branching ratios from previously published experiments are collated with new data presented for the first time in this study. The experimental data are compared to calculations using a five-dimensional collective Hamiltonian (5DCH) based on the covariant density functional theory (CDFT). A realistic potential in the quadrupole shape parameters V (β, γ) is determined from potential energy surfaces (PES) calculated using the CDFT. The parameters of the 5DCH are fixed and contained within the CDFT. Overall, a satisfactory agreement is found between the data and the calculations. In line with the energy staggering S(I) of the levels in the 2 γ + bands, the potential energy surfaces of the CDFT calculations indicate γ-soft shapes in the N = 88 nuclides, which become γ rigid for N = 90 and N = 92. The nature of the 0 2 + bands changes with atomic number. In the isotopes of Sm to Dy, they can be understood as β vibrations, but in the Er and Yb isotopes the 0 2 + bands have wave functions with large components in a triaxial superdeformed minimum. In the vicinity of 152 Sm, the present calculations predict a soft potential in the β direction but do not find two coexisting minima. This is reminiscent of 152 Sm exhibiting an X (5) behavior. The model also predicts that the 0 3 + bands are of two-phonon nature, having an energy twice that of the 0 2 + band. This is in contradiction with the data and implies that other excitation modes must be invoked to explain their origin.