The effect of Echinacea purpurea extract on sexual glands of male rats.
Fifty percent of men over the age of fifty are diagnosed benign prostate hyperplasia. It is caused by disorders in the balance of androgens and estrogens, depending on the activity of sexual glands; therefore it is advisable to examine the functioning of these organs and to determine the pathogenetic mechanism of effect of this pathology. The antiandrogenic effect of Echinacea preparations was examined in our previous study and hypoplasia of histological structures and the mass reduction of prostate were determined. This encouraged more detailed investigation of the effect of the preparation directly to the organs, participating in the synthesis of the male hormone - testosterone. The effect of Echinacea extract on a testicle and epididymis was examined, the mass of these organs was determined, the proportion between the mass of the organ and the mass of a body was calculated, the changes in histological structures were evaluated in this study.


METHODS
Experiments with the Wistar line 3-month-old male rats were carried out. There were three experimental groups of rats. The first one was control group. The rats of the second group were fed on the usual food enriched with the Echinacea extract additive with the proportion of 50 mg/kg for 4 weeks. The rats in the third group were fed equally to the second one for 8 weeks. The clinical death of the animals was caused by overdosage of the solution of phenobarbital (1 mg/kg). The rats were weighed, the testicles and epididymis were eliminated, and pathohistological examinations were carried out.


RESULTS
The average weight of the male rats in the control group was 1530+/-166.37mg, in the second group - 1520+/-164.62mg, and in the third group -1499+/-158.81 mg. Calculations of the relative quantity between the mass of the organs and the body weight were made and it was estimated that the testicles of the rats in the first group made up 0.496+/-0.399% of a body mass, in the second one -0.459+/-0.419%, and in the third one - 0.429+/-0.410%. The epididymis in the control group made up 0.189+/-0.332% of a body mass; in the second one - 0.1733+/-0.328%, and in the third one - 0.1723+/-0.198%. The histological structural changes were traced after 4 weeks of using the preparation, however they became more obvious after 8 weeks.


CONCLUSIONS
Results of the study enabled to determine statistically significant reduction in the percentage of a testicle and the body mass, as well as changes in histological structures after 8 weeks of consuming extract of Echinacea purpurea.
Skaudickas
Darijus
D
Department of Physiology, A. Mickeviciaus 9, 44307 Kaunas, Lithuania. sdarijus@one.lt.
Kondrotas
Anatolijus
A
Baltrusaitis
Kestutis
K
D000726:Androgen Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D020900:Echinacea; D004822:Epididymis / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000187:drug effects*; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D008517:Phytotherapy; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000494:pharmacology*; D011470:Prostatic Hyperplasia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013091:Spermatogenesis / Q000187:drug effects; D013737:Testis / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000187:drug effects*; D013739:Testosterone / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors*; D013997:Time Factors
D000726:Androgen Antagonists; D010936:Plant Extracts; D013739:Testosterone