Triptolide: a potential male contraceptive
- PMID: 9733151
Triptolide: a potential male contraceptive
Abstract
The antifertility effect of triptolide and other related compounds, isolated from Tripterygium wilfordii, has been demonstrated in male rats. The exact sites and mechanism of action of triptolide remain unknown. Our objectives were to determine whether triptolide at selected dose levels that induce infertility has any detrimental effects on the testes and to determine the sites and the possible mechanisms of its action. Groups of six adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were given oral administration of either vehicle (control group) or triptolide (50 or 100 microg/kg body weight) daily for 35 or 70 days. Body weight gain was normal in all treated groups. All six rats treated with a high dosage of triptolide were infertile during the second (63-70 days) mating trial. A lower dose (50 microg) of triptolide gave intermediate fertility values. Plasma levels of luteinizing hormone, follicle-stimulating hormone, testosterone, and intratesticular testosterone were not significantly different between control and triptolide-treated groups. Cauda epididymal sperm content was decreased by 68% and the motility, which averaged 58.2% in the control rat, was reduced to almost zero. No effects of triptolide were observed on testis and accessory organs weight, volumes of tubular lumen and the total Leydig cells, tubule diameter, and the number of Sertoli cells, spermatogonia, preleptotene (PL), and pachytene (P) spermatocytes. There were, however, modest but significant decreases in tubule volume and the number of round spermatids at stages VII-VIII. No changes in the germ cell apoptotic index measured at stages VII-VIII and XIV-I were noted between controls and rats rendered infertile with a high dose of triptolide. Thus, triptolide, at a dose level that induces complete infertility in the adult rats, has minimal adverse effects on the testes and acts primarily on the epididymal sperm making triptolide an attractive lead as a post-testicular male contraceptive.
Similar articles
-
Long-term effects of triptolide on spermatogenesis, epididymal sperm function, and fertility in male rats.J Androl. 2000 Sep-Oct;21(5):689-99. J Androl. 2000. PMID: 10975416
-
Posttesticular antifertility action of triptolide in the male rat: evidence for severe impairment of cauda epididymal sperm ultrastructure.J Androl. 2000 May-Jun;21(3):431-7. J Androl. 2000. PMID: 10819451
-
Effects of tripchlorolide on the epididymides and testes of rats.Asian J Androl. 1999 Sep;1(3):121-5. Asian J Androl. 1999. PMID: 11250778
-
[Progress in research on triptolide].Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2005 Feb;30(3):170-4. Zhongguo Zhong Yao Za Zhi. 2005. PMID: 15719629 Review. Chinese.
-
The epididymal microenvironment: a site of attack for a male contraceptive?Invest Urol. 1980 Jul;18(1):1-10. Invest Urol. 1980. PMID: 6773905 Review.
Cited by
-
Triptolide enhances carboplatin-induced apoptosis by inhibiting nucleotide excision repair (NER) activity in melanoma.Front Pharmacol. 2023 Jun 1;14:1157433. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2023.1157433. eCollection 2023. Front Pharmacol. 2023. PMID: 37324464 Free PMC article.
-
Discovery and Characterization of Multiple Classes of Human CatSper Blockers.ChemMedChem. 2022 Aug 3;17(15):e202000499. doi: 10.1002/cmdc.202000499. Epub 2022 Jun 14. ChemMedChem. 2022. PMID: 35644882 Free PMC article.
-
Effectiveness and safety of KunXian capsule for the treatment of IgA nephropathy.BMC Nephrol. 2022 May 10;23(1):179. doi: 10.1186/s12882-022-02814-7. BMC Nephrol. 2022. PMID: 35538439 Free PMC article.
-
Tripterygium hypoglaucum (Lévl.) Hutch and Its Main Bioactive Components: Recent Advances in Pharmacological Activity, Pharmacokinetics and Potential Toxicity.Front Pharmacol. 2021 Nov 23;12:715359. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.715359. eCollection 2021. Front Pharmacol. 2021. PMID: 34887747 Free PMC article. Review.
-
A plant root extract, triptonide, is a reversible male contraceptive in mice and monkeys.Biol Reprod. 2021 Jun 4;104(6):1187-1188. doi: 10.1093/biolre/ioab057. Biol Reprod. 2021. PMID: 33758919 Free PMC article. No abstract available.
Publication types
MeSH terms
Substances
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Other Literature Sources