Effect of Ingestion and Inhalation of Lead on the Reproductive System and Fertility of Adult Male Rats and their Progeny

Abstract

<jats:p> Ninety-day-old Sprague-Dawley rats were intoxicated for 70 d with lead, given either as 0.3% lead acetate in drinking water or by inhalation as 5 mg m<jats:sup>-3</jats:sup> lead oxide. Direct or transmitted lead toxicity for the male reproductive system was assessed in the rats and their offspring from pituitary and genital organ weights after exposure, the numbers of Sertoli and germ cells, the number, motility and morphology of epididymal spermatozoa, the levels of plasma testosterone, LH and FSH and fertility tests. Whole blood lead levels were similar after lead ingestion and after inhalation (58.0 ± 1.7 μg dl<jats:sup>-1</jats:sup> vs. 51.1 ± 1.8 μg dl<jats:sup>-1</jats:sup>). Lead acetate ingestion did not affect the reproductive system or fertility of rats. Inhalation of lead oxide did not affect fertility either, but seminal vesicle weight dropped significantly, which might suggest an alteration in the pattern of testosterone secretion. In the male progeny of sires that inhaled lead, the number of epididymal spermatozoa decreased but this did not interfere with fertility. Our results show that for the doses studied, lead inhalation and lead ingestion do not produce strikingly different effects on the male rat's reproductive system. Differences between the present findings and those of others might be due to difference of rat strain or of age at exposure. </jats:p>

Lead chloride affects sperm motility and acrosome reaction in mice

“…Other authors, using sub-chronic lead exposure in rats (Pinon-Lataillade et al 1993;Murthy et al 1995) and mice (PinonLataillade et al 1995) also did not find changes in sperm density (Table 1).…”

Inhibitory Actions of Lead on Steroidogenesis in Ma-10 Mouse Leydig Tumor Cells

“…Lead (Pb) affects testosterone production on the hypothalamic-pituitary-testis axis, inhibits Leydig cell testosterone production and serum testosterone levels, accelerates capacitation and premature acrosome reaction, and delays spermatogenesis [1,2,4,5,9,[11][12][13][14][15][17][18][19]. Moreover, Pb directly inhibits testosterone production in Leydig cells by reducing the expression of steroidogenic acute regulatory (StAR) protein and the activities of steroidogenic enzymes, such as P450 side-chain cleavage enzyme (P450scc) or 3b-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3b-HSD) in MA-10 Leydig tumor cells [3,6,7].…”

Heavy Metals and Fertility

“…In our study, women with a history of previous miscarriages exhibited a higher cadmium excretion. In rats and mice, the time of Cd exposure during pregnancy determined whether miscarriage, growth retardation, or fetal malformation was induced (Padmanabhan & Hameed, 1990;Soukupova & Dostal, 1991;De et al, 1993;Pinon-Lataillade et al, 1993). With increasing Cd accumulation in oocytes, the number of oocytes reaching the second metaphase dropped significantly (Pisa et al, 1990).…”

“…This may interfere with the normal oocytic development and cause chromosomal damage (Al-Hakkak et al, 1986;Johansson & Pelliciari, 1988). Pregnancies that occur despite an elevated heavy metal body load are at a greater risk of miscarriage, fetal malformation, placental insufficiency, and premature birth (McMichael et al, 1986;Laudanski et al, 1991;Fagher et al, 1993;Farris et al, 1993;Pinon-Lataillade et al, 1993).…”