Title:Echinochrome Pigment Improves Male Rats' Fertility
Volume: 12
Issue: 3
Author(s): Neveen Asmet Farag, Ayman S Mohamed*, Hanan Farag El Sayed, Eman Y. Salah EL Din and Abdel Rahman A. Tawfik
Affiliation:
- Lecturer
of Physiology- Zoology Department - Faculty of Science - Cairo University-12613, Giza, Egypt
Keywords:
Echinochrome, sea urchin, infertility, testis, oxidative stress, male fertility.
Abstract:
Background: Infertility is the first-rate public health problem affecting one in five married
couples globally; male causes embody a significant proportion. Natural products could be an
alternative or complementary inexpensive treatment for such matters. Echinochrome (Ech) is a natural
quinone pigment obtained from sea urchin, and it was confirmed to possess many pharmacological
properties due to its chemical activity.
Objective: The current research paper was targeted to evaluate the potential effects of Ech on male
fertility, and to highlight the possible involved mechanisms.
Methods: Eighteen adult male rats were randomly distributed into three groups: control (1 ml of
2% DMSO, p.o.), low dose Ech (0.1 mg/kg, p.o.), and high dose Ech (1 mg/kg p.o.).
Results: The high dose Ech caused a significant decline in the levels of glucose, ALT, AST, ALP,
urea, Cr, uric acid, TG, TC and LDL-C and testicular tissue MDA, while it caused a significant rise
in the levels of albumin, TP, HDL-C, FSH, LH, testosterone and testicular tissue GSH activity.
Moreover, it showed a significant positive effect on the testis weight, caudal epididymis weight,
sperm count, sperm motility, sperm morphology, fructose concentration, and α-glucosidase activity.
However, no significant changes were observed in the histological examination of testicular tissue
among all groups.
Conclusion: High dose Ech improved male rat-fertility either directly by activating the pituitarygonadal
axis, and or indirectly via enhancing the renal and hepatic functions, the lipid profile and
or the antioxidant pathways.
