Lactational Lead Exposure Perturbates Androgenesis in Juvenile and Pubertal Wistar Rats

Abstract

Background: High to low lead (Pb) concentrations in breast milk has been found to perturb some biological events in the postnatal life. While postnatal Pb exposure has been reported to impair some andrological parameters in mammals, the age-dependent andrological signature of lactational Pb poisoning is not clear. Aims and Objectives: This study investigated the effects of Pb exposure during lactational period on the testicular andrological profiles of rats at certain postlactational ages using varying doses of Pb. Material and Methods: Lactating mothers and their pups were randomly divided into 4 groups comprising 24 pups each. The treatment groups received 10mg/dL, 30mg/dL, and 70mg/dLof lead acetate in their drinking water from postnatal day one (P1) to P21 of the lactational period. The control rats received distilled water. At P22, P60, P90 and P120, the pups from each group were euthanized, testes were collected, homogenized and the supernatant was used to assay for testosterone and oestrogen using standard methods. Results: Lactational lead poisoning was associated with depressed testicular testosterone productions (P<0.05 compared with controls) and abnormally high levels of testicular oestrogen. These statistically significant differences (P<0.05) in androgens levels were corrected to near normal with increasing postnatal ages at low doses. Conclusion: These results show that lactational Pb intoxication causes reversible androgenic perturbations at low doses but irreversible damage at high doses during postnatal life. Conclusively, high lactational Pb is associated with post-lactational irreversible impairment of androgenic profiles.

Keywords

• Lactational Lead
• Androgenesis
• Pubertal Wister Rats
• Juvenile