Influence of stress caused by chronic isolation on the reproductive function of male rats

Abstract

Studies on white outbred 3,54-month-old male rats showed that stress caused by chronic 2-month social isolation has a negative impact on reproductive function. A negative effect of long-term social isolation on the sexual behavior of male rats was revealed: a statistically significant increase in the latent period until the first emotional approach to the female, a decrease in the total time of emotional approaches, the time of anogenital sniffing of the female partner, and the number of allogrooming acts. At the same time, chronic isolation stress does not have a statistically significant effect on the total number of spermatozoa in the ejaculate of male rats, but it contributes to an increase in immobile forms, a decrease in the time of spermatozoa motility and their acid resistance compared to intact animals.