Pyrethroids Exposure: Implications for Testicular Dysfunction in Rats
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Date
2018-01
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Abstract
Pyrethroids are synthetic pesticides which at low dose of exposure are harmless to humans but at environmentally
high concentrations they cause debilitating effects in humans and animals alike. Lack of regulation of the
insecticide applications in agriculture and among Nigerian households is therefore a cause for health concern.
The reproductive effects of these chemicals are not precisely known. Twenty healthy, sexually active male Wistar
rats were randomly divided into four groups. Three groups were exposed to the insecticide in sprayed puffs from
the aerosolized insecticide for 15, 30 and 45 seconds/day respectively in air – tight plastic housing for 60 days
while one group served as the untreated control. All animals were euthanized via cervical dislocation; the testes
were excised and fixed in Bouin’s fluid for routine histological studies using haematoxylin and eosin. The cauda
epididymis was also excised for semen quality evaluation. Reduced body weight, alteration of testicular
microstructure and significant increase in the proportion of abnormal and non-motile sperm cells were observed
in animals exposed to pyrethroid. Exposure to pyrethroid insecticide may lead to body weight loss accompanied
with testicular dysfunction possibly leading to sterility in the rats.
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Keywords
Pyrethroids, Testes, Sterility, Insecticides