title: Protective effects of Big-leaf mulberry and physiological roles of nitric oxide synthases in the testis of mice following water immersion and restraint stress.
abstract: Big-leaf mulberry is a new hybrid plant from the application of cell engineering technology, but its effect in stress-induced testicular dysfunction is unknown. Nitric oxide (NO) is a tiny, highly reactive lipophilic molecule produced by nitric oxide synthases (NOS). Three isoforms of NOS (neuronal NOS, inducible NOS and endothelial NOS) have been identified. Our aim was to investigate the effect of water immersion and restraint stress (WIRS) on NOS in the testis, and the effect of Big-leaf mulberry to protect against WIRS. The activity and expression of NOS, and total antioxidant capacity (T-AOC) in the mouse testis of different treatment groups (non-WIRS, 3 h-WIRS, WIRS-recovery) were examined. Histological analysis of WIRS-induced testicular damage and immunohistochemical staining of NOS were also analyzed. Results demonstrated that WIRS-exposed mice produced several injuries and showed an increased iNOS and eNOS mRNA expression in testes, whereas pretreatment with Big-leaf mulberry down-regulated iNOS and eNOS mRNA expressions and up-regulated T-AOC activities. Immunohistochemical studies showed that both iNOS and eNOS were localized in germ cells, spermatozoa and blood vessels in addition to Leydig cells and Sertoli cells, but nNOS was not present in these areas. In conclusion, our results suggested that Big-leaf mulberry exerted a protective effect on WIRS-induced testicular dysfunction, and iNOS and eNOS appeared to exert an important action in mouse testes exposed to WIRS.
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
authors.forename: Mulin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
authors.forename: Quanwei
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
authors.forename: Kaizhi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
authors.forename: Dagan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Mao
authors.affiliation: Quzhou Bureau of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Quzhou 324000, China.
authors.forename: Yutu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: College of Animal Science and Technology, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China. Electronic address: fxshi@njau.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Fangxiong
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Shi
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D031625:Morus / Q000737:chemistry*; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D010936:Plant Extracts / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000502:physiology; D013737:Testis / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D010936:Plant Extracts; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase
keywords: Big-leaf mulberry; Mouse; Nitric oxide synthase (NOS); Testis; Water immersion and restraint stress (WIRS)