Morphometric and stereological assessment of the effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles on the mouse testicular tissue

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate the effects of zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZNPs) on morphometric and stereological parameters of mouse testis. Background: ZNPs are increasingly used in sunscreens, biosensors, food additives, pigments, rubber manufacture, and electronic materials. However, the potential toxicity of these nanoparticles is not well understood. Methods: Experimental Groups (ZNP-1, ZNP-2 and ZNP-3) received one of the following treatments daily for 35 days: 5, 50 and 300 mg/kg ZNPs respectively. Right testis from each animal was fi xed in bouin's solution for measurement of total volume of testis, total volume of seminiferous tubules, total volume of interstitial tissue and total number of Leydig cells by stereological methods. Seminiferous tubule diameter and seminiferous epithelium height were assessed by morphometrical method. The left testicles were homogenized for measurement of testosterone concentration. Results: There was a signifi cant decrease in the weight of testicles in ZNP-3 groups. The stereological and morphometrical parameters were signifi cantly changed in ZNP-2 and ZNP-3 groups. ZNP-2 and ZNP-3 groups also showed a signifi cant decrease in testosterone concentrations (p < 0.05). Conclusion: This study demonstrated that ZNPs can change stereological and morphometrical parameters of the seminiferous tubules and reduce the number of Leydig cells (Tab. 3, Fig. 3, Ref. 36). Text in PDF www.elis.sk.

Alteration of sperm parameters and reproductive hormones in Swiss mice via oxidative stress after co‐exposure to titanium dioxide and zinc oxide nanoparticles

“…studies (Hong et al, 2015;Khorsandi et al, 2017;Mozaffari, Parivar, Roodbari, & Irani, 2015). Therefore, it is logical to say that the reduction of sperm count and motility, and the alter- Talebi et al (2013), Moridian, Khorsandi, and Talebi (2015) and Khorsandi, Orazizadeh, Mansouri, Hemadi, and Moradi-Gharibvand (2016). important molecule that acts as a substrate for GSH-Px and GST is the GSH (Josephy, Mannervik, & De Montellano, 1997).…”

Insight Study on the Comparison between Zinc Oxide Nanoparticles and Its Bulk Impact on Reproductive Performance, Antioxidant Levels, Gene Expression, and Histopathology of Testes in Male Rats

“…In contrast, ZnONP-2 and BZnO-2 hurt sexual performance, with a more adverse effect for BZnO-2. This could be attributed to the NPs’ administration at low doses, which might have a defensive impact through their antioxidant processes, while high doses could have a harmful effects [ 30 ]. This was supported by [ 31 ], who reported that ZnONP at a low dose (5 mg/kg) could have a beneficial effects on male reproduction.…”

Nanomaterial exposure, toxicity, and impact on human health

“…In the first case, both sexes may be affected, whereas in the second one the mother and the concepts may be injured. As far as the first types of effects are concerned, most available evidence is indirect, consisting of organic and functional (i.e., hormone secretion) alterations of the gonads in rodents, reported after exposure to various ENM such as nickel (Kong et al, 2014), gold (Li et al, 2013), carbon black (Yoshida et al, 2009), silver (Castellini et al, 2014), titanium dioxide ENM (Tassinari et al, 2014), and zinc oxide ENM (Moridian, Khorsandi, & Talebi, 2015). For silica ENM and MWCNT, it has been shown that the alterations may be transient, with a return to normal after about 2 months for silica ENM (Xu et al, 2014) and 3 months for MWCNT (Bai et al, 2010).…”