The protective effect of vitamin E against oxidative damage caused by formaldehyde in the testes of adult rats.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate the effect of formaldehyde (FA) on testes and the protective effect of vitamin E (VE) against oxidative damage by FA in the testes of adult rats.


METHODS
Thirty rats were randomly divided into three groups: (1) control; (2) FA treatment group (FAt); and (3) FAt + VE group. FAt and FAt + VE groups were exposed to FA by inhalation at a concentration of 10 mg/m(3) for 2 weeks. In addition, FAt + VE group were orally administered VE during the 2-week FA treatment. After the treatment, the histopathological and biochemical changes in testes, as well as the quantity and quality of sperm, were observed.


RESULTS
The testicular weight, the quantity and quality of sperm, the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and glutathione (GSH) were significantly decreased whereas the level of malondialdehyde (MDA) was significantly increased in testes of rats in FAt group compared with those in the control group. VE treatment restored these parameters in FAt + VE group. In addition, microscopy with hematoxylin-eosin (HE) staining showed that seminiferous tubules atrophied, seminiferous epithelial cells disintegrated and shed in rats in FAt group and VE treatment significantly improved the testicular structure in FAt + VE group.


CONCLUSIONS
FA destroys the testicular structure and function in adult rats by inducing oxidative stress, and this damage could be partially reversed by VE.
Zhou
Dang-Xia
DX
Research Center of Reproductive Medicine, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an 710061, China.
Qiu
Shu-Dong
SD
Zhang
Jie
J
Tian
Hong
H
Wang
Hai-Xue
HX
D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000494:pharmacology; D004822:Epididymis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D005557:Formaldehyde / Q000633:toxicity*; D008297:Male; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013076:Sperm Count; D013737:Testis / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000473:pathology; D014810:Vitamin E / Q000494:pharmacology*
D000975:Antioxidants; D014810:Vitamin E; D005557:Formaldehyde