Effects of methyltestosterone on reproduction in the Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica).
Although the hormone-mediated effects of the synthetic androgenic hormone methyltestosterone (MT) are well characterized in mammals, little is known about endocrine and other toxic effects on reproduction in birds. In a one-generation study, MT was administered to adult Japanese quail (12 pairs per group) at dietary dose levels of 0, 10, 50, and 110 ppm for a period of 3 weeks. Reproductive performance was severely affected in the groups receiving 50 and 110 ppm MT. In females, the egg-laying rate was reduced not only related to the dose administered but also to the duration of treatment. The administration of 110 ppm, and to a lesser extent, of 50 ppm MT resulted in an immediate and dramatic decrease in the total number of eggs laid, which complicated reliable assessment of other reproduction-related parameters. In males, the findings suggested inhibition of spermatogenesis at dose levels of 50 ppm and above, resulting in a subsequent reduction in male fertility.
Selzsam
Britta
B
Federal Institute of Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany.
Grote
Konstanze
K
Gericke
Christine
C
Niemann
Lars
L
Wittfoht
Werner
W
Chahoud
Ibrahim
I
D045930:Anabolic Agents / Q000633:toxicity*; D000818:Animals; D003370:Coturnix / Q000502:physiology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005260:Female; D007246:Infertility / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000662:veterinary; D008297:Male; D008777:Methyltestosterone / Q000633:toxicity*; D010060:Ovulation / Q000187:drug effects*; D013091:Spermatogenesis / Q000187:drug effects*
D045930:Anabolic Agents; D008777:Methyltestosterone