Concentrations of lead, cadmium and zinc in the tissues of reproductive organs of men

Oldereid, Nan Birgitte; Thomassen, Yngvar; Attramadal, Arne; Olaisen, B.; Purvis, K.

doi:10.1530/jrf.0.0990421

Cited by 133 publications

(77 citation statements)

References 3 publications

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“…15 The cadmium concentration in the human testis, epididymis and prostate also increases with age, although lead and selenium concentrations in reproductive organs remain constant over the whole age range. 16,17 Handelsman and Staraj demonstrated that, after excluding men with different diseases associated with diminished testicle size, the specific effects of age on testicular volume appeared only in the eighth decade of life. 18 Among healthy men in this age group, the testis volume is 31% lower than among 18 to 40-year-old men.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The male biological clock is ticking: a review of the literature

2008

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The term biological clock is usually used by physicians and psychologists to refer to the declining fertility, increasing risk of fetal birth defects and alterations to hormone levels experienced by women as they age. Female fecundity declines slowly after the age of 30 years and more rapidly after 40 and is considered the main limiting factor in treating infertility. However, there are several scientific reports, chapters in books and review articles suggesting that men may also have a biological clock. The aim of our study was to conduct a review of the literature, based on the Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online (Medline), to evaluate the male biological clock. After adjustments for other factors, the data demonstrate that the likelihood that a fertile couple will take more than 12 months to conceive nearly doubles from 8% when the man is < 25 years old to 15% when he is > 35 years old. Thus, paternal age is a further factor to be taken into account when deciding on the prognosis for infertile couples. Also, increasing male age is associated with a significant decline in fertility (five times longer to achieve pregnancy at the age of 45 years). Patients and their physicians therefore need to understand the effects of the male biological clock on sexual and reproductive health, in that it leads to erectile dysfunction and male infertility, as well as its potential implications for important medical conditions such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The male biological clock is ticking: a review of the literature

2008

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“…Despite cadmium being significantly correlated with human semen volume and spermatozoa defects (Chia et al 1992) and accumulating in an age-dependent manner in the testes of men (Oldereid et al 1993), knowledge about its subtle effects on all testicular processes, from gonocytogenesis to spermiogenesis, is incomplete.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stage-dependency of apoptosis and the blood-testis barrier in the dogfish shark (Squalus acanthias): cadmium-induced changes as assessed by vital fluorescence techniques

McClusky

2006

Cell Tissue Res

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Naturally occurring heavy metals and synthetic compounds are potentially harmful for testicular function but evidence linking heavy metal exposure to reduced semen parameters is inconclusive. Elucidation of the exact stage at which the toxicant interferes with spermatogenesis is difficult because the various germ cell stages may have different sensitivities to any given toxicant, germ cell development is influenced by supporting testicular somatic cells and the presence of inter-Sertoli cell tight junctions create a blood-testis barrier, sequestering meiotic and postmeiotic germ cells in a special microenvironment. Sharks such as Squalus acanthias provide a suitable model for studying aspects of vertebrate spermatogenosis because of their unique features: spermatogenesis takes place within spermatocysts and relies mainly on Sertoli cells for somatic cell support; spermatocysts are linearly arranged in a maturational order across the diameter of the elongated testis; spermatocysts containing germ cells at different stages of development are topographically separated, resulting in visible zonation in testicular cross sections. We have used the vital dye acridine orange and a novel fluorescence staining technique to study this model to determine (1) the efficacy of these methods in assays of apoptosis and blood-testis barrier function, (2) the sensitivity of the various spermatogonial generations in Squalus to cadmium (as an illustrative spermatotoxicant) and (3) the way that cadmium might affect more mature spermatogenic stages and other physiological processes in the testis. Our results show that cadmium targets early spermatogenic stages, where it specifically activates a cell death program in susceptible (mature) spermatogonial clones, and negatively affects blood-testis barrier function. Since other parameters are relatively unaffected by cadmium, the effects of this toxicant on apoptosis are presumably process-specific and not attributable to general toxicity.

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“…There are few studies regarding the effect of age on Zn content in the prostate using chemical techniques and instrumental methods (Hienzsch et al 1970;Leissner et al 1980;Tisell et al 1982;Oldereid et al 1993). However, the majority of these data are based on measurements of processed tissue.…”

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confidence: 99%

“…There is evidence that certain quantities of chemical elements are lost as a result of such treatment (Zaichick 2004). Moreover, only one study employed quality control using certified reference materials (CRM) for determination of the Zn mass fraction (Oldereid et al 1993).…”

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confidence: 99%

Age-related histological and zinc content changes in adult nonhyperplastic prostate glands

Zaichick

2013

AGE

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To clarify age-related histological and Zn content changes in nonhyperplastic adult prostate glands, a quantitative morphometric and energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence analyses were performed. The prostates were obtained from autopsies of 63 subjects aged 21-70 years who died mainly from trauma. It was found that histologically normal prostate tissue undergoes substantial changes throughout aging. These changes are reflected in an increase of the percent volume of the glandular lumen for the third to fifth decades, reaching a maximum for the decade 41-50 years. Over the same period, the percent volume of the stroma remains steady, but the percent volume of epithelium decreases, approximately, linearly with age. The percent volume of glandular lumen (reflects the volume of prostatic fluid) in the prostate gland of men aged 41 to 50 years is 1.5-fold higher than that in men aged 21 to 30 years, but the epithelium/lumen (prostatic fluid) ratio is approximately twofold lower. This suggests that accumulation of the prostatic fluid develops from 30 to 50 years of age. This accumulation of the prostatic fluid results in an increase of the Zn mass fraction in the prostate. In turn, when the intraprostatic Zn level exceeds a certain level by the end of the fifth decade, it begins to work as a trigger for different factors, all of which increase the proliferation of stromal cells. Deductions from these results allow possible partial explanations of both relevant prostatic aging mechanisms and the effects of dietary interventions using supplementary Zn.

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Concentrations of lead, cadmium and zinc in the tissues of reproductive organs of men

Cited by 133 publications

References 3 publications

The male biological clock is ticking: a review of the literature

The male biological clock is ticking: a review of the literature

Stage-dependency of apoptosis and the blood-testis barrier in the dogfish shark (Squalus acanthias): cadmium-induced changes as assessed by vital fluorescence techniques

Age-related histological and zinc content changes in adult nonhyperplastic prostate glands

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