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This study aims to determine the effect of red dragon (Hylocereus polyrhizus) fruit peel extract (RDFPE) on the parameters of Leydig cells number, seminiferous tubules diameter, and testicular weight of mice (Mus musculus) exposed to heat (40°C). Twenty adult male mice were divided randomly into five groups. The control group (C) mice only received a placebo. Meanwhile, the treatment groups mice were exposed to heat for 45 minutes daily for 36 days and oral administration of placebo, RDFPE of 250, 500, and 1000mg/kg BW for T0, T1, T2, and T3, respectively. The result showed that heat exposure on mice (T0 group) caused a lower of all of the parameters (p 0.05) than the control group (normal mice). However, the higher dose of RDFPE (1000 mg/kg BW, T3 group) resulted in the lower values of those parameters (p

The current experiment was designed to investigate the effect of zeranol implantation on lambs and goats’ kids raised under commercial conditions. Ten male Awassi lambs (AL) (4-5 months old) with an average body weight of 33.7 ± 0.5 kg and 10 male black goat kids (GK) (3-4 months old) with an average body weight of 18.8 ± 0.7 kg were used in the experiment. The experiment was conducted in Berebuhar village close to Duhok city in May the 15th, 2019The animals from each group were randomly divided into two subgroups, the first group was the control group and the other group was implanted with 24 mg zeranol. The animals were grown for 43 days and then slaughtered. Growth rate, average daily gain and carcass characteristics were measured. Data were analysed as factorial 2 × 2. The results showed that implantation both animal groups with zeranol significantly reduced testicular weight by approximately 55 % and 71 % for goat kids and Awassi lambs respectively. Moreover, the results showed that zeranol implantation found to reduce total body fat from 892 to 816g in goat kids and from 3395 to 2856 g in Awassi lambs. It can be concluded that zeranol implantation has an effect on total body fat and fat tissue distribution.

Transplantation of spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs) is an alternative reproductive method to achieve conservation and production of elite animals in livestock production. Creating a recipient animal without endogenous germ cells is important for effective SSC transplantation. However, natural mutants with depletion of SSCs are difficult to obtain, and drug ablation of endogenous germ cells is arduous to perform for practical use. In this study, we used mouse models to study the preparation of recipients with congenital germ cell ablation. We knocked out (KO) Ets-variant gene 5 (Etv5) in mice using the CRISPR/Cas9 system. The testicular weight of Etv5-/- mice was significantly lower than that of wild-type (WT) mice. The germ cell layer of the seminiferous tubules gradually receded with age in Etv5-/- mice. At 12 weeks of age, the tubules of Etv5-/- mice lacked germ cells (Sertoli cell-only syndrome), and sperm were completely absent in the epididymis. We subsequently transplanted allogeneic SSCs with enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) into 3-(immature) or 7-week-old (mature) Etv5-/- mice. Restoration of germ cell layers in the seminiferous tubules and spermatogenesis was observed in all immature testes but not in mature adult testes at 2 months post-transplantation. The presence of heterologous genes Etv5 and EGFP in recipient testicular tissue and epididymal sperm by PCR indicated that sperm originated from the transplanted donor cells. Our study demonstrates that, although Etv5-/- mice could accommodate and support foreign germ cell transplantation, this process occurs in a quite low efficiency to support a full spermatogenesis of transplanted SSCs. However, using Etv5-/- mice as a recipient model for SSC transplantation is feasible, and still needs further investigation to establish an optimized transplantation process.

This study was conducted to clarify the relationships of plasma concentrations of insulin-like peptide 3 (INSL3), testosterone, inhibin, and insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) with scrotal circumference and testicular weight in Japanese Black beef bull calves (n = 20), from birth to pre-puberty. Monthly blood sampling (0 to 7 months) and scrotal circumference measurements (0 to 7 months) were performed. Testicular weight was recorded immediately after castration at 7 months. Plasma INSL3, testosterone, inhibin, and IGF-I concentrations were measured either by enzyme immunoassay or time-resolved fluorescence immunoassay. The correlation coefficients of these hormonal concentrations with scrotal circumference were significant (P < 0.0001) and it was higher for INSL3 (r = 0.647) than for testosterone (r = 0.597), IGF-I (r = 0.400), and inhibin (r = –0.453). Calves with heavier testes (> 60 g) at castration (7 months) had higher (P < 0.05) plasma INSL3 (from 3 to 7 months) and inhibin (from 1 to 4 months) concentrations than those with lighter testes (< 60 g). The calves with heavier testes at castration had larger (P < 0.05) scrotal circumference than those with lighter testes from 3 to 7 months. In conclusion, blood INSL3 concentrations may be the best functional indicator among the hormones analyzed for determining total testicular volume during pre-puberty in bull calves. In addition, inhibin and INSL3 concentrations in early calfhood may be functional predictors for testicular weight at pre-puberty.

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of the supplementation of dl-methionine and l-lysine HCl to diet based on cafeteria standards of native chickens on body weight, internal organs and reproductive organs of native chicken at pullet phase. A total of 128 fourteen weeks-old native chickens were used in this study. The native chickens were divided into 4 treatments with 4 replications. The dietary treatments were: T 0 (ration based on cafeteria standard), T 1 (ration based on protein standard of NRC), T 2 (cafeteria ration+0.09% DL - M ethionine+0.22% L - L ysine HCl), T 3 (cafeteria ration+0.19% dl-methionine+0.42% l-lysine HCl). The data collected were body weight, liver and bile, pancreas, gizzard, testicular and ovary weight of native chickens aged 20 weeks. The result of this study for T 0 , T 1 , T 2 and T 3 showed that body weight of chickens were 1418.60; 1431.59; 1503.88 and 1556.41 g/bird, liver and bile weights were 22.44; 21.79; 24.49 dan 25.93 g/bird, pancreas weights were 2.33; 2.28; 2.50 and 2.70 g/bird, gizzard weight were 25.31; 23.91; 25.38 and 26.86 g/bird, testicular weight were 3.66; 3.86; 9.55 and 9.46 g/bird, testicular volume were 3.81; 3.38; 9.13 and 9.16 and ovary weight were 1.12; 1.32; 3.14 and 4.61 g/bird, respectively. The results showed that supplementation of DL - M ethionine and L - L ysine HCl gave significantly effect (P

The aim of this study was to describe the seminal, histomorphological and hormonal effects of the oral indenopyridine RTI-4587-073(l) on feline testicle. Clinical side effects were also recorded. Sixty testicles of 30 adult cats that had been treated (d 0) with RTI-4587-073(l) 12.5 mg/kg PO and randomly hemiorchiectomized twice on: day -14 (n = 8), 6 h (n = 6), 12 h (n = 8), 24 h (n = 6), day 7 (n = 8), day 14 (n = 6), day 21 (n = 6), day 35 (n = 6) or day 42 (n = 6) were studied. Before each hemiorchiectomy, fecal samples for testosterone (T) measurement were collected and the testes were grossly and ultrasound examined. This indenopyridine did not cause changes in testicular weight (P > 0.1), volume (P > 0.1), echostructure, gonadosomatic index (P > 0.1), fecal T concentrations (P > 0.1), nor clinical side effects. A severe disorganization of the cytoarchitecture of the seminiferous epithelium, sloughed cells and fluid, were observed in the 6 h samples up to a maximum at 24 h. Tubular diameter (P < 0.01) increased twice, during the first 24 h and on d 35. Germinal epithelium achieved its minimum height on d 14 to rapidly recover thereafter. This treatment caused a significant decrease in the volume of all the seminiferous cell components, except spermatogonias. All histotological parameters normalized by the end of the study. It was concluded that RTI-4587-073(l) severely disrupted spermatogenesis during the first 24 h after treatment returning to normality in approximately one spermatic cycle without clinical side effects., Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias

In rams, artificial long days followed by continuous light stimulate testosterone secretion during the non-breeding season. The objective of this study was to determine whether artificial long days followed by continuous light could stimulate testosterone secretion in Alpine bucks as well as in those exposed to long days followed by a melatonin treatment. All bucks were kept in shaded open pens. Control males were exposed to natural photoperiod conditions (n=5). Males of the two experimental groups were exposed to 2.5 months of long days from 1 December (n=5 each). On 16 February, one group of males was exposed to 24 h of light per day until 30 June; the other group was exposed to natural variations of photoperiod and received two s.c. melatonin implants. Testicular weight was determined every 2 weeks, and the plasma testosterone concentrations once a week. In the control and the two photoperiodic-treated groups, a treatment×time interaction was detected for testicular weight and plasma testosterone concentrations (P

The use of high D(+)-fructose corn syrup has increased over the past several decades in the developed countries, while overweight and obesity rates and the related diseases have risen dramatically. However, we found that feeding a high D(+)-fructose diet (80% D(+)-fructose as part of the diet) to weaning rats for 21 days led to reduced food intake (50% less, P < 0.0001) and thus delayed the weight gains in the body (40% less, P < 0.0001) and testes (40% less, P < 0.0001) compared to the no D(+)-fructose diet. We also challenged a minimum requirement of dietary D(+)-glucose for preventing the adverse effects of D(+)-fructose, such as lower food intake and reduction of body weight and testicular weight; the minimum requirement of D(+)-glucose was ã23% of the diet. This glucose amount may be the minimum requirement of exogenous glucose for reducing weight gain.

The body weight and testicular and epididymal parameters of Afar, Long-eared Somali (LES), and Woyto-Guji (WG) breeds of goat were investigated. A total of 405 randomly selected bucks of Afar (n=135), Long-eared Somali (n=135), and Woyto-Guji (n=135) were included in this study. The overall mean scrotal circumference (SC), testicular volume (TV), testicular length (TL), testicular weight (TW), body weight (BW), epididymal weight (EW), body condition score, and testicular diameter (TD) measurements in all bucks were 20.8±1.94 cm, 68.1±6.18, 4.96±0.79 cm, 70.0±5.66 g, 22.1±2.98 Kg, 9.09±1.88 g, 2.55±0.68, and 4.28±0.45 cm, respectively. Significant (p<0.05) breed differences in SC, TD, TL, TW, BW, EW, and TV were recorded. Long-eared Somali (LES) breed was heaviest and Afar breed was the lightest and Woyto-Guji (WG) had the average BW. In all breeds, the parameters were positively correlated. In Afar breed, the TW had a significant correlation with BW (r=0.90) and SC (r=0.65). In LES BW was highly correlated with TD (r=0.96) and TL (r=0.96). In WG, TW was significantly correlated with TD (r=0.94), EW (r=0.90), TL (r=0.89), and BW (r=0.82). In multiple regression analysis the linear combinations of BCS, SC, and BW significantly predicted TW, TL, TV, TD, and EW in all breeds. In conclusion, Long-eared Somali breed displayed greater BW and scrotal and testicular traits.

Testicular sizes of animals are important for identification of those with adequate sperm production. The aim of this study was to define the testicular and related size estimates that would be associated with optimal cauda epididymal sperm counts (ESC) in Sahel goats based on postmortem evaluations. A stratified quota sample population of 125 male goats inclusive of all testicular sizes was taken at a slaughterhouse in Maiduguri, Nigeria. The bucks were aged 18-30 months and weighed 17.04 ± 2.99 (12-25) kg. Body, testicular and epididymal weights of each goat with other related size measurements were estimated. ESC was determined from homogenized tissue using a manual cytometer. At the cut-off ESC of >1.1 × 109 sperm heads, 66 (52.5%) of the goats had optimal ESC which was associated with testicular weight of 59.90 ± 16.10 (31.4-86.2) kg, gonado somatic index of 3.51 ± 0.69 (2.0-4.5) g/kg and scrotal circumference of 19.07 ± 1.29 (17.0-21.8) cm. The ESC correlated better with age than body weight of the animals and correlated also with testicular and scrotal size variables and epididymal weights. The size variables of the scrotum and testis correlated with one another. These findings provide data that may be used to anticipate adequate antemortem sperm reserve based on testicular size during preliminary selection of sires for breeding from a sexually mature Sahel buck population.Keywords: Optimal sperm output, testicular size, scrotal size, Sahel goat, Nigeria

Buffalo are an economically important source for meat and milk production, especially in Brazil. However, important aspects of their biology remain unknown thus far. Herein, we describe the reproductive characteristics of male Murrah buffalo (Bubalus bubalis) raised under extensive management conditions by applying biometrics associated with testicular weight. We analyzed seven males, divided into two groups: G1, which consisted of four 18-month-old animals, and G2, which consisted of three 24-month-old animals. Testicular development occurs slowly in Murrah buffalo, suggesting a delay of sexual maturity. The biometric testicular parameters analyzed were scrotal circumference, testicular weight, testicular length, testicular width, testicular thickness and testicular circumference. Our data indicate strong correlations between SC, age and body weight, and additional significant relationships were identified between body weight, age and other testicular parameters. Thus, these parameters are suitable indicators when selecting bulls for breeding purposes.

Background The present research details the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and pathological changes of testis in cryptorchidism model. We also tried to find relationship between VEGF and pathological changes in cryptorchidism. Methods Six-week-old ICR male mice were operated to induce unilaterally cryptorchid model. The expression of VEGF was investigated by Western blot and Immunohistochemistry. Hematoxylin-eosin staining was used to evaluate pathological changes at different day intervals. Results In our study, immunohistochemistry of VEGF in testicular cross sections suggested that the VEGF was expressed in the cytoplasm of leydigcells, Sertoli cells and germ cells. Quantitative analysis of VEGF by Western blot showed a time-dependent decrease of VEGF expression in cryptorchidism. VEGF expression significantly decreased at day 7, the lowest at day 21 and then little recovery was observed at day 28 in unilateral cryptorchid testis. Conclusions Interestingly, the expression of VEGF was decreased significantly at day 14, the lowest at day 21 and then little recovery was observed at day 28 in its self-control testis. The decreased and recovered weight of testis was similar to VEGF expression in unilateral cryptorchid testis and self-control testis. Therefore, we propose that there is a time dependent decrease of VEGF expression in cryptorchidism. VEGF have an important role on impaired spermatogenesis in cryptorchidism.

PURPOSE: To determine whether the testicular torsion causes long-term effects on the spermatogenesis of the contralateral testis, and whether the orchiepididymectomy of the twisted testis could prevent them, using specific spermatogenesis parameters to elucidate the conflicting results in the literature. METHODS: Seventy-four pubertal male Wistar rats were randomly selected. The experimental group consisted of 40 rats, divided into four subgroups, submitted to 1.080 degrees counterclockwise left testicular torsion and its scrotal fixation at the beginning of the experiment, and left orchiepididymectomy at one, five, ten and 90 days, respectively. The control group consisted of 24 rats, divided into four sham operation control subgroups. An additional control subgroup consisted of the ten remaining rats, submitted only to the left orchiepididymectomy at the beginning. At 90 days, the contralateral testes of the experimental and control subgroups were collected for the evaluation of their spermatogenesis parameters: testicular weight, seminiferous tubular diameter, Johnsen score and differential counting of the germ cells. RESULTS: No statistically significant differences were observed among the experimental and control subgroups for all of the spermatogenesis parameters of the contralateral testes. CONCLUSIONS: Testicular torsion does not cause long-term effects on the spermatogenesis of the contralateral testis in pubertal rats, and the orchiepididymectomy of the twisted testis is not necessary for preventive purposes for the contralateral spermatogenesis. OBJETIVO: Determinar se a torção testicular causa efeitos tardios sobre a espermatogênese do testículo contralateral e se a orquiepididimectomia do testículo torcido poderia preveni-los, usando parâmetros específicos da espermatogênese para elucidar os resultados conflitantes na literatura. MÉTODOS: Foram selecionados aleatoriamente 74 ratos machos púberes da linhagem Wistar. O grupo experimental foi composto por 40 ratos divididos em quatro subgrupos, submetidos à torção anti-horária de 1,080 graus do testículo esquerdo e sua fixação escrotal no início do experimento e à orquiepidimectomia esquerda com um, cinco, dez e 90 dias, respectivamente. O grupo controle foi composto por 24 ratos divididos em quatro subgrupos de cirurgias simuladas. Um subgrupo controle adicional foi constituído pelos dez ratos restantes submetidos unicamente à orquiepididimectomia esquerda no início do experimento. Aos 90 dias, os testículos contralaterais dos subgrupos experimentais e controles foram coletados para avaliação dos parâmetros de suas espermatogêneses: peso testicular, diâmetro do túbulo seminífero, graduação de Johnsen e contagem diferencial das células germinativas. RESULTADOS: Não houve diferença estatisticamente significativa entre todos os subgrupos experimentais e controles para todos os parâmetros analisados da espermatogênese dos testículos contralaterais. CONCLUSÕES: A torção testicular não causa efeitos tardios sobre a espermatogênese do testículo contralateral em ratos púberes e a orquiepididimectomia do testículo torcido não é necessária para fins preventivos da espermatogênese contralateral.

A variabilidade da circunferência escrotal e os efeitos de idade e raça,assim como, as relações existentes entre o peso testicular (PT), a circunferência escrotal (CE) e o peso vivo (PV) foram investigados em touros. As raças Devon, Polled Hereford e Red Angus apresentaram valores de CE mais altos que as demais raças avaliadas, tanto inglesas, como continentais, sintéticas e zebuínas. O percentual descartado de touros devido à baixa CE variou de 7,0 a 24,2%. O aumento da CE acompanhou o aumento do PT dos animais, e estes foram altamente relacionados, r2 = 0,90. Os resultados sugerem que, em touros jovens, a CE é a melhor forma de predizer o PT e, portanto, uma ferramenta útil para selecionar touros. The variability of scrotal circumference and the effects of age and breed as well as the relationship between testicular weight (TW), scrotal circumference (SC), and live weight (BW) were investigated in bulls. Devon, Polled Hereford, and Red Angus breeds showed higher SC values than the other British, Continental, Synthetic, and Zebu studied breeds. The percentage of culled bulls because of low SC ranged from 7.01 to 24.25%. The increase of SC was proportional to the increase in TW and they were highly correlated (r2= 0.90). The results suggest that SC in young bulls is the best way to predict TW and, therefore, a useful tool for their selection.

After infection of male mice with the plerocercoids (spargana) of Spirometra mansoni, serum levels of estrogen and testicular weight were analyzed by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and weighing machine, respectively. The serum level of estrogen increased progressively in infected mice compared with normal controls, whereas the testicular weight of infected mice decreased significantly (P < 0.05). These results suggest that certain substances from spargana change the steroid hormone metabolisms in the host by unknown pathways, and chronic infection may contribute to change of the function of steroid hormone target organ, i.e., testis, in male mice.

The effects of various frequencies of semen collection on several quantitative and qualitative semen characteristics were investigated in adult turkey breeder males (30 to 40 wk of age). In Experiment 1, a total of 35 males were first trained for semen collection (twice a week for 2 consecutive wk), and then divided into five groups (seven males each), each group being collected either once every 2 wk, once every week, twice every week, three times every week (each for 4 wk) or five to seven times per week (each for 2 wk). Volume, sperm concentration, and sperm number per ejaculate were determined for each ejaculate. No significant differences between groups were observed for sperm concentration (P > 0.05), but males collected once every 2 wk, once per week, or twice per week had larger volumes than males collected at higher frequencies (P < 0.05). Thus there were significant differences for sperm number per ejaculate between groups (P < 0.05). Also, daily semen output (DSO) was markedly increased in males collected at the highest frequencies (e.g., DSO = 0.62 x 10(9) and 1.93 x 10(9) in males collected once and five times per week). Finally, in euthanatized birds (36 wk) no differences between groups were observed for body weight (25.8 +/- 1.7 kg), testicular weight (51.5 +/- 2.2 g), or total number of elongated spermatids per male (14.0 +/- 0.8 x 10(9)). In Experiment 2, 35 males were distributed into groups and collected under the same conditions as in Experiment 1. Besides quantitative analyses of ejaculates (volume, sperm concentration, and sperm per ejaculate), sperm viability between groups was also tested using the Sybr14/PI fluorescence test. Our results demonstrated: 1) a favorable effect of high semen collection frequencies on sperm viability and, 2) a marked decline in sperm viability during the first 2 d following a 2-d resting period in males collected five times a week. We concluded that turkey males express their optimal reproductive capacity more efficiently when semen collection is undertaken at a high rather than a low frequency.

Four hundred and eighty guineas were raised under short days (7L:17D) from 3 weeks of age, then subjected to increasing light at 8, 16, 20, or 24 weeks of age. After receiving 7 additional hours of light (+ 1 hr per week) for each of 7 consecutive weeks, each group was then maintained on long days (14L:10D) until 70 weeks of age. No significant differences were observed between photoschedules for growth rate or adult body weight; however, the age at which the daylengths were increased greatly influenced the development of the testes and daily sperm output (DSO). The earlier the age birds were submitted to increasing light, the sooner the rapid phase of testis growth occurred and the lower adult testicular weight. Results were similar in the mean DSO expressed as a function of the age or photoschedule. Male guineas preconditioned by short days and submitted to increasing daylength from 20 weeks of age appeared to reach sperm production sufficiently early to inseminate contemporary females as they started to lay. Sperm production was high enough to ensure insemination of 6 to 12 females per male instead of the usual 3 to 4 under the present management conditions in the industry.