Antispermatogenic effects of cyclophosphamide in the Syrian hamster

Abstract

Cyclophosphamide is an alkylating antineoplastic drug and has been shown to impair spermatogenesis after chronic exposures. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the effect of cyclophosphamide on sperm production in hamsters following subacute intraperitoneal (ip) exposures. The Syrian hamster, Mesocricetus auratus, aged 10-11 wk, received single daily ip doses for 4 d ranging from 10 to 250 mg cyclophosphamide/kg body weight. Control hamsters received an equivalent volume of phosphate-buffered saline solution. Testis weight, caudal sperm number, and sperm morphology were monitored for 12 wk. Cyclophosphamide failed to induce sperm abnormalities. Testis weight and sperm count were slightly suppressed at wk 1 and 4 before returning to normal at wk 12. This study showed that subacute doses of cyclophosphamide in hamsters did not significantly affect the sperm production as previously reported in other animals.

Male Genital Tract

“…232 However, problems exist in the extrapolation of the results of animal studies performed with cytotoxic anticancer agents to men because of species-specific and age-related differences in the sensitivity of the testis to these agents. 235 This difference has been ascribed to the inability of this agent to penetrate into the seminiferous tubules in the hamster. 232 The reasons for this lack of correlation were unclear, although evaluation of human clinical data is complicated by the widespread use of combination chemotherapy.…”