Background:The hypertension affects about one third of the adult persons all over the world. Amlodipine is a common drug used for treatment of this disease. Infertility is one of the side effects of amlodipine, but remains not completely explained . The antioxidant, anti-apoptotic and the anti-inflammatory effects of the omega-3 on many tissues including the testis had been documented. Aim of the work:To observe the effects of amlodipine exposure on the albino rat testis using a light and an electron microscopy. Also, to assess whether these effects were decreased by withdrawal of the drug or intake of omega-3. Material and Methods: Forty adult male albino rats were used in this study. They were divided into 4 groups, 10 rats each. Group (1), was the control. Group (2), Amlodipine treated group, the rats received 5 mg of amlodipine besylate dissolved in 333 ml of a normal saline daily orally for 2 months. Group (3), Amlodipine plus omega-3, the rats received 5 mg of amlodipine besylate dissolved in 333 ml of a normal saline daily orally plus omega-3 in a dose of 400 mg/kg b. w. daily orally for 2 months. Group (4), withdrawal group, the rats received 5 mg of amlodipine besylate dissolved in 333 ml of a normal saline daily orally for 2 months, then stop the drug and wait 3 months. All the animals of group 1, 2 and 3 were sacrificed after 2 months. The rats of group (4) sacrificed after 5 months. The rat testicular functions were assessed histo-pathologically by a light and an electron microscope and biochemically by free serum testosterone level measurement. Results: Regarding the testosterone level, amlodipine group had significantly lower level than the control and the withdrawal groups. The light microscopical examination of the testicular tissue of group (2) showed marked degenerative changes and arrested spermatogenesis in most seminiferous tubules, while these degenerative changes in group ( 3) appeared milder than that of the previous group. Most of the seminiferous tubules of group (4) retained its normal structure. Electro-microscopic examination of the group of amlodipine revealed several abnormalities such as multiple dilated mitochondria, multiple lipid droplets, and highly cytoplasmic vacuoles. The spermatids of the same group showed inverted acrosome and highly distorted ruptured plasma membrane. The fine structural features of group (3) had minimal vacuolations and lipid droplets. The withdrawal group revealed a nearly normal appearance of the testicular cells. Conclusion:A low dose of amlodipine causes testicular toxicity but an improvement was occurred after the stoppage of the drug. Also, omega-3 had an ameliorative role on the amlodipine testicular toxicity.

Chronic stress has been related to multiple diseases. Inflammation is proposed strongly to link stress to stress-related diseases in different organs, such as small intestine, colon, and brain. However, stress cellular effect on the pancreatic tissue, especially the exocrine one, had received relatively little attention. This work aimed to evaluate the cellular effect of chronic immobilization stress on the pancreatic tissue function and structure along with evaluating the sex role in this type of pancreatic injury. Thirty rats were equally divided into 5 groups: control male, control female, stressed male, stressed female, and stressed female with bilateral ovariectomy. Stressed rats were exposed to immobilization for 1 h/day, 6 days/week, for 3 weeks. Rats were then decapitated for further biochemical, histological, histo-morphometric, and immunohistochemical study. The results showed that, in male and female rats, chronic immobilization stress produced hypoinsulinemia and hyperglycemia, with increasing exocrine pancreatic injury markers by increasing oxidative and inflammatory status of the pancreatic tissue, and exhibited a degenerative effect on the pancreatic tissue. However, the stress-induced pancreatic effects were more obvious in male rats and female rats with bilateral ovariectomy than that in female rats. It could be concluded that male animals were more susceptible to stress-induced pancreatic damage than females. The ovarian hormones are responsible, at least partly, for pancreatic tissue protection since the stressinduced pancreatic injury in females was exacerbated by ovariectomy. In this study, inflammatory and oxidative stress differences in both sexes could provide a plausible explanation for sex differences.

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