Male Contraception, IV: Hypotonic-Like Effect from Echeveria gibbiflora on Human Sperm

Abstract

At present there is no accepted method for the regulation of male fertility. The most appropriate form of contraception would undoubtedly be to develop from traditional plant-derived folk drugs a contraceptive male method. Hypoosmotic shock is used for validate plasma membrane function and its fertilizing capacity of human sperm. Such effect is induced in human sperm in the presence of a purified fraction from Echeveria gibbiflora (PFEG) aqueous crude extract. The hypotonic-like effect included a distension of the plasma membrane over the acrosome region and in some occasions around the sperm middle piece. An enhanced activity of the immobilizing and agglutination effects was induced instantaneously after the addition of PEFG versus aqueous crude extract activity (OBACE). Using electron microscopy it was possible to observe a deposit of a "sticky" dense material intercalated along the plasma membrane. The membrane was sealed making it impossible to measure the viability or metabolic activity of the treated sperm by the fluorescence (FDA-IP) technique. It was also possible to corroborate the dispersion of the acrosomal content and the disappearance of the acrosomal and nuclear membrane. Results that makes PFEG hypotonic-like effect a serious candidate to conduct a study to determine the predicting capacity of this compound in human infertility and suggest that the plant may yield a compound suitable for use as male contraceptive agent.

CALCIUM (HYDROGEN-1-MALATE) HEXAHYDRATE ONECHEVERIA GIBBIFLORALEAVES AND ITS EFFECT ON SPERM CELLS

“…Results that agree with our previous report where, with the use of 10 mM of Mg , and Zn 2 þ ions, we are able to induce acrosome reaction in pig spermatozoa [21]. Nevertheless, the agglutination, immobilization, and hypotonic effects are instantaneously and clearly shown in the presence of OBACE or partially purified OBACE (Figures 7 and 8) [22]. This supports the hypothesis that other compounds might be involved in these biological effects.…”

Immobilization effect of Ruta graveolens L. on human sperm: A new hope for male contraception

“…Immobilization effect of these plants were due to sperm death, so motility revival test had negative results (Lohiya et al, 2000;Reyes et al, 2002;Chakrabarti et al, 2003;Khillare and Shrivastav, 2003).…”

“…Medicinal plants were one of those methods which nowadays are one of the matters of interest among researches in different countries. Effects of some plants like Gossypium herbaceum (Hoffer et al, 1987), Azadirachta indica (Garg et al, 1994;Khillare and Shrivastav, 2003), Tripterygium wilfordii (Bai and Shi, 2002), Echiveria gibbiflora (Delgado et al, 1999;Reyes et al, 2002), Allium sativum (Chakrabarti et al, 2003), Carica papaya (Lohiya et al, 2000), Alstonia macrophylla (Chattopadhyaya et al, 2005), Ricinus communis (Sandhyakumary et al, 2003), Achyranthes aspera and Stephania hernandifolia (Paul et al, 2006) on human or animal sperm had been studied which all had been chosen by folks or according to history they had been of indigenous usage.…”

Effects of plants and plant products on the testis

“…Incubation of guinea spermatozoa with the crude aqueous extract of Echeveria gibbiflora caused a hypotonic-like effect, which included distention of the plasma membrane over the acrosomal region and formation of a huge head bubble [52]. Electron microscopic observation of human spermatozoa revealed the presence of a sticky dense material intercalated along the plasma membrane on exposure to a purified fraction from the crude aqueous extract of Echeveria gibbiflora [53].…”