Therapeutic effects of quercetin against bisphenol A induced testicular damage in male Sprague Dawley rats

The present study was designed to investigate protective effects of quercetin against bisphenol A (BPA) induced testicular toxicity in male Sprague Dawley rats. Twenty adult male rats were divided into four groups. The first group served as the control and was provided with normal saline. The second group of rats was treated with 50 mg/kg of BPA dissolved in alcoholic saline. The third group received oral gavage of 50 mg/kg quercetin while the fourth group was treated with quercetin (50 mg/kg) along with BPA (50 mg/kg). All of the treatments were carried out for 52 days. Testicular tissues and epididymis were used for histology while blood plasma was used for hormonal and biochemical analysis. BPA administration resulted in a significant reduction in seminiferous tubule diameter and epithelial height with impaired spermatogenesis. Quercetin treatment resulted in restoration of spermatogenesis and reversal of histological damage. In addition, BPA treatment significantly reduced (p < 0.05) plasma testosterone level (ng/ml) while estrogen was not affected. Similarly, BPA caused a significant alteration in the lipid profile. Interestingly, quercetin treatment led to a marked increase in plasma testosterone, decrease in estrogen concentration, as well as a normalized lipid profile. In conclusion, results indicated that BPA administration induces toxic effects on testis and epididymis, impairs spermatogenesis, with an imbalance in hormonal levels and lipid profile while quercetin amended these toxic effects by restoring normal spermatogenesis, testicular tissue damage, and hormonal levels. This suggests that quercetin may be a potential therapeutic against BPA induced testicular toxicity.