title: Influence of royal jelly on the reproductive function of puberty male rats.
abstract: The adverse effects of royal jelly on the reproductive system of puberty male rats were investigated. Royal jelly was daily administered by gavage to Sprague-Dawley rats at doses 200, 400, and 800 mg/kg for 4 weeks. The body weight and organ coefficients were determined. Sperm count, spermatozoa abnormality, and testicular histopathology were examined through light microscopy. Radioimmunoassay was used to detect serum hormones. The dietary exposure to royal jelly did not affect body weight, but the organ coefficients for the pituitary and testis in the high-dose group were decreased significantly compared with the control group, and significant changes in the microstructure of the testis were observed. No significant differences in sperm count were observed among all groups, however, the sperm deformity rate in the high-dose group increased significantly. Serum hormones in the high-dose group were significantly different from the control group. After royal jelly was stopped for 14 days, the adverse changes were partially reversed and returned to levels close to those in the control group. In conclusion, high-dose royal jelly oral administration for 4 weeks adversely affected the reproductive system of pubescent male rats, but the unfavorable effects are alleviated to some extent by cessation of administration.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Food Science and Technology, Nanchang University, Nanchang 330047, China.
authors.forename: Anshu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.forename: Li
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Guoxiu
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Xie
authors.forename: Hongbing
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Zhiyong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ma
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size / Q000187:drug effects; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012098:Reproduction / Q000187:drug effects*; D012741:Sexual Maturation / Q000187:drug effects; D013076:Sperm Count; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013737:Testis / Q000473:pathology; D000099219:Royal Jelly
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D012739:Gonadal Steroid Hormones; D000099219:Royal Jelly