An in vivo and in silico predictive study on the toxicological and modulatory effects of abused substances on sperm quality and testicular function in Wistar rats

Abstract

Introduction: Some compounds like Opioids that are commonly used may affect the biological system in addition to having a high potential for addiction. Objective: This study assessed the effects of commonly misused substances on sperm quality and testicular function in Wistar rats. Material and Methods: Twenty-five Wistar rats weighing an average of 120 ± 0.1 g were randomly assigned to five treatment groups and were orally administered with water for the control, carbonated sugar drink, 150, 300, and 300 mg/kg body weight doses of menthol, monosodium glutamate, and tramadol respectively. The rats were euthanized 24 hours after the last day of the thirty-day treatment. Biochemical assays were on carried out the plasma and testicular homogenate. Results: There was a significant increase (p<0.05) in testosterone, FSH, LH, HDL, TG, phospholipids, glycogen, reduced glutathione concentration, sperm total count; %testicular weight change, and; there was also a significant decrease in the %tail defect, and %non-motile sperm across the treatment groups compared to the control. Contrary, there was a significant increase (p<0.05) in the testicular ACP and Na-K ATPases activities but MDA levels decreased significantly across treatment groups. The ouabain-α-ATPase complex’s binding energy is comparable to that of the α-ATPase complexes with tramadol, glucose, menthol, and MSG, respectively. Conclusion: The improved sperm quality and testicular function show that these compounds were not harmful to the reproductive functions of Wistar rats. The docking analysis corroborated the effects of ATPase activity modulation on sperm motility.