Effect of experimentally induced anemia on the testicular activity of the toad (Bufo melanostictus)

Abstract

Anemia induced experimentally either by administration of phenylhydrazine or by splenectomy stimulated spermatogenic and steroidogenic activities in the testes of the toad ( B Z L~O melanostictus). It is concluded that the stimulated activity of the testes is mediated through the hypothalamo-pituitary axis.A relationship between testicular activity and erythropoiesis has been observed in both mammalian and non-mammalian vertebrates. In rats, removal of the testes produced anemia, which was corrected by administration of androgen (Ravines, '61). In castrated toads (Bufo melanostictus), a marked diminution in both haemoglobin and haematocrit has been reported from this laboratory (Boral et al., '67). There is no evidence that experimentally induced anemia causes any change in testicular activity in either of the above classes of vertebrates. In the present communication we report on the effect on the testes, of anemia produced experimentally in toads -accomplished either by administration of phenylhydrazine or by splenectomy -and in rats by splenectomy. Phenylhydrazine has been shown to produce anemia in rabbits (Friedman et al., '62). Splenectomy does not produce anemia in rats (Piliero et al., '61), but the spleen has been reported to be the sole site of red cell formation in the frog (Siegel, '70). MATERIALS AND METHODSMale toads (Bu.fo melanostictus) averaging 40-50 gms in body weight were collected from their natural habitat during the breeding season and during hibernation. Animals were kept for a few days in cages wet with running tap water in order to acclimate them to the laboratory environment. The animals were then divided into different groups and the following experiments were performed. J. EXP. ZOOL ... 188. 77-88. Studies during breeding season A. Experiments on toads injected with phenylhydrazine-HCl OT sp lenec tomizedFour equal groups of animals were selected for the study. Animals of the first group received an injection of a n aqueous solution of phenylhydrazine-HC1 through the dorsal lymph sac at a dose level of 1 mgltoad every other day for 10 days. The second group was injected with solvent only. The phenylhydrazine-treated toads and the controls (second group) were sacrificed 24 hours after the last injection. The third group of animals was splenectomized, and the fourth group was shamoperated. Groups three and four were kept for 20 days prior to sacrfice.Samples of blood from all the animals were collected and haematological studies were performed according to the method of Deb et al. ('64). Blood samples from another batch of the paired experimental and control animals were collected under liquid paraffin, and oxygen content (PO2) of the blood samples was determined in the Beckman Physiological Gas Analyzer (Model 160) by following the polarographic method using the microelectrode technique. Testes of the animals were dissected out and their wet weights were recorded. They were then cut into pieces. One or two pieces from each animal were used for histochemical localization of ...

Iron and copper in male reproduction: a double-edged sword

“…Spermatogenesis occurs under a high proliferation rate, demanding considerable oxygen consumption. However, under anemic conditions the testicular PO 2 is relatively low, oxygen diffusion is slow and the testicle has little capacity to increase total blood flow [85]. Therefore, males presenting with iron or copper deficiency-related anemia may present with poor semen parameters [86].…”