Effect of maca (Lepidium meyenii) extract on non-obstructive azoospermia in male mice.

Abstract

Maca (Lepidium meyenii) is a medicinal and edible plant that has a long history attention because of its potential to improve fertility and sexual function. In this study, effects of maca on azoospermia were investigated. The effective components of maca were screened. The therapeutic action of maca were evaluated in a busulfan-induced azoospermic model. It was found that maca could alleviate the vacuolation of spermatogenic tubules and testicular lesions, promote the recovery of spermatogenic epithelium, inhibit the proliferation of stromal cells, significantly increase the serum testosterone content, and improve the number and quality of sperm. Maca extract was then divided into polysaccharides, oligosaccharides and small molecules fractions for preliminary screening of efficacy. These results showed that there was no significant difference between the maca polysaccharide fraction and maca extract. The results were shown that maca can improve non-obstructive azoospermia, the polysaccharide fraction was the active components.