Investigation of thermotolerance in mouse testis.
The effect of a two-fraction heat treatment on mouse testis has been assessed by measuring testis weight loss at 1 week after treatment. The rate of repair of 'sublethal' heat damage following the first treatment was dependent on the severity of the treatment. Using a primary treatment of 41.5 degrees C for 30 min, the weight loss following a test treatment of 41.5 degrees C for 30 min returned to that of the test treatment alone within an interval of 16-24 h. Using a milder primary treatment of 40.0 degrees C for 30 min, repair of sublethal heat damage appeared to be complete by 1-2 h. When a single test treatment was used, there was no evidence of heat-induced thermal resistance (thermotolerance) following primary treatments of 40.0 or 41.5 degrees C for 30 min, for periods up to 24 h between treatments. A small degree of thermotolerance could, however, be demonstrated following the most severe primary treatment used if full dose: effect curves were obtained. Thermotolerance, manifest as a decrease in slope, was maximal at approximately 4 h after the primary treatment. The results are discussed with reference to other normal tissue data.
D000818:Animals; D006358:Hot Temperature; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D013737:Testis / Q000502:physiology*; D013997:Time Factors