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| Author(s): |
Arielle Cristina Arena
Total Authors: 1
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| Document type: | Doctoral Thesis |
| Press: | Campinas, SP. |
| Institution: | Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Instituto de Biologia |
| Defense date: | 2006-11-10 |
| Examining board members: |
Wilma De Grava Kempinas;
Oduvaldo Camara Marques Pereira;
Teresa Lucia Colussi Lamano;
Paulo Roberto Dalsenter;
Maria Martha Bernardi
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| Advisor: | Wilma De Grava Kempinas |
| Abstract | |
Fenvalerate is a synthetic pyrethroid insecticide widely used in agriculture to control a variety of insects. Although it is considered to be of low acute toxicity to mammals, studies have showed that pyrethroids can have estrogenic activity and can act as endocrine disruptors, causing important reproductive impairment in males. It is documented in the literature that the exposure of pregnant rats to fenvalerate decreased plasma testosterone levels and weights of seminal vesicle and vas deferens in male pups during adult life, besides alterations in their sexual behavior. It was also observed that adult rats exposed to formulated fenvalerate,by inhalation, exhibited a significant reduction in the testis weight and epididymal sperm count. Little is known about the mechanisms by which fenvalerate exerts its action on reproduction; thus, the objective of the present study was to investigate the estrogenic activity and the effects of fenvalerate on the reproductive system and fertility of adult male rats. For this, adult male rats (aged 90 days) received, for 30 consecutive days, by oral gavage, 40 mg/kg/day of fenvalerate (technical grade; 96.8% purity). The control group received only the vehicle (corn oil), in the same experimental conditions. At the end of the treatment, the following parameters were analyzed: body weight; absolute weight of reproductive organs, liver and kidneys; plasma testosterone levels; germ cell count in the testis and epididymis; sperm morphology; fertility tests by natural matings and artificial insemination in utero; ejaculated sperm counts in uterus; sexual behavior; analysis of testis and epididymis at the optical and electron microscopic levels, and evaluation of possible estrogenic activity of different doses (0.4; 1.0; 4.0; 8.0 and 40 mg/kg) of fenvalerate by the uterotrophic test. Fenvalerate residues were quantified using High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) in reproductive and vital organs; sperm and epididymal protein were also realized. The results were compared by Student-t and Mann-Whitney tests, according to the characteristics of each variable, while the results of the uterotrophic test were compared by ANOVA followed by the Tukey test. The results of fenvalerate quantification revealed that the pyrethroid was retained in reproductive (testis and epididymis) and vital organs (brain and liver). The treatment with fenvalerate decreased the absolute weights of testis and epididymis. Furthermore, the treatment did not provoke reduction of plasma testosterone levels. It was also verified that the treated rats presented a reduction in daily sperm production and in epididymal sperm number. The fertility tests did not reveal differences related to the treatment. The results of the fenvalerate quantification revealed high concentrations of insecticide residues in the epididymis, testis, brain and liver. The histopathology of the testis and epididymis as well as analysis of sperm and epididymal proteins did not show alterations. Moreover, fenvalerate, at the tested doses, did not present estrogenic activity in vivo. It was concluded that fenvalerate, in these experimental conditions, was retained in reproductive organs and was spermatotoxic, since it reduced sperm production and storage, but this alteration was not sufficient to compromise fertility by virtue of the high reproductive efficiency of rodents in contrast with humans (AU) | |