Methanolic extract of Nepeta paulsenii as an ameliorative agent against CCl4 induced testicular damage in male albino rats

Abstract

The issue of male sexual dysfunction arises due to numerous complications linked with sperm motility, imbalance of antioxidant enzymes and hormonal levels. Carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) is widely used as a standard toxin to induce chemical injury and toxicity. A lot of research has been performed on many species of the genus Nepeta in vitro and in vivo but the plant Nepeta paulsenii have been rarely used in this aspect. The current research was designed to explore the impacts of methanolic extract of the Nepeta paulsenii plant on CCl4 induced testicular impairment in male albino rats. Forty-eight rats were distributed equally into 8 groups; Control, Vehicle control, CCl4 treated (1 ml/kg), CCl4 + Silymarine treated, CCl4 + Nepeta paulsenii (200 mg/kg) treated, CCl4 + Nepeta paulsenii (400 mg/kg), Nepeta paulsenii (200 mg/kg) and Nepeta paulsenii (400 mg/kg) treated. Blood and testicles were obtained and analyzed. To check antioxidant enzymes, hormonal concentrations, daily sperm production (DSP), protein content and histopathology various analyses were performed. CCl4 exposure resulted in adverse morphological changes and significant (p < 0.05) reduction in testosterone, luteinizing hormone (LH), follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) concentrations, the activity of catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione-disulfide reductase (GSR) and glutathione S-transferase (GST) enzymes, daily sperm production (DSP), protein content and high-density lipoproteins (HDL). CCl4 increased the TBARS and H2O2 production along with the cholesterol, triglyceride and low-density lipoproteins (LDL) levels, but Nepeta paulsenii restored these changes back to their normal state significantly (p < 0.05). Therefore, it was concluded that Nepeta paulsenii extract has potential to ameliorate the CCl4 induced testicular damage. Keywords: Nepeta paulsenii, Carbon tetrachloride, Testicular damage, Antioxidant enzymes