title: Chronic cadmium toxicity to sperm of heavy cigarette smokers: immunomodulation by zinc.
abstract: The aim of the study was to investigate the role of zinc therapy in 125 male cigarette smokers with infertility. The mechanism involved in the zinc/cadmium relationship was evaluated through the effect of a zinc-deficient diet and supplementation on testes of male adult Sprague-Drew rats. Heavy smoking was associated with low sperm count, motility, and morphology and increased seminal cadmium levels. Zinc therapy improved sperm quality and increased seminal IL-4, but reduced TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma. A zinc-deficient diet led to high cadmium testicular accumulation comparable with those supplemented with cadmium. Cadmium had a linear correlation with TNF-alpha and IFN-gamma, but not with IL-4. Cytology of testicular aspirate and histopathology were normal in supplemented groups as in controls. These results indicate that zinc modulates the putative effect of cadmium through its enhancement of T-helper 2 cytokines expression and down-regulation of T-helper 1 cytokines.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait University, Safat.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Al-Bader
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Omu
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dashti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002104:Cadmium / Q000633:toxicity*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000378:metabolism; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D015536:Down-Regulation; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012661:Semen / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013076:Sperm Count; D013081:Sperm Motility; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D013737:Testis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism; D018417:Th1 Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D015032:Zinc / Q000172:deficiency / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D002104:Cadmium; D015032:Zinc