Abstract
BackgroundThe incidence of obesity-associated decline in male fertility has increased over the years. Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP), a natural plant polysaccharide extracted from the Chinese herb L. barbarum has shown promising therapeutic effects in overcoming the same.AimThis study aimed to investigate the protective effect of LBP on the testes of obese mice.MethodsFollowing administration of LBP to high-fat diet-induced obese mice for 35 days, serum, sperm, and testis samples were obtained for subsequent experiments. Biochemical analysis and sex hormone content determination were performed to observe changes in glycolipid metabolism and testosterone levels, respectively, in the blood. Hematoxylin and eosin staining were carried out to assess the pathological changes in the testicular tissue. Oxidative stress levels were detected using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and expression levels of endoplasmic reticulum stress markers were determined using western blot in the testicular tissue.ResultsOur results suggested that LBP reduced glucose levels and insulin resistance, increased testosterone levels and insulin sensitivity, and decreased testicular oxidative stress and pathological damage in obese mice. In addition, LBP down-regulated the expression of p-eIF2α, GRP78, and CHOP in the testicular tissues of obese mice.ConclusionOur results show that LBP is a potential novel drug for preventing male infertility caused by obesity.
Highlights
Obesity increases the risk of hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (Di Vincenzo et al, 2018), but its impact on the reproductive system is being increasingly valued (Kahn and Brannigan, 2017; Liu and Ding, 2017)
After 4 weeks of intervention, the body weights of mice in the 20 and 40 mg intervention groups were significantly reduced compared to the obesity model group (P < 0.01)
These results indicate that Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP) can reduce Fasting blood glucose (FBG) levels and improve insulin sensitivity in obese mice
Summary
Obesity increases the risk of hypertension, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease (Di Vincenzo et al, 2018), but its impact on the reproductive system is being increasingly valued (Kahn and Brannigan, 2017; Liu and Ding, 2017). Studies have shown that ERS injury is one of the main causes of abnormal spermatogenesis and persistent excessive ERS can interfere with the testicular germ cell-mediated secretion of related proteins or cytokines, thereby affecting testicular spermatogenesis (Guo et al, 2015). Studies have shown that whenever reactive oxygen species (ROS) release exceeds the capacity of endogenous antioxidants, oxidative stress occurs, which is inextricably linked to obesity and related diseases (especially insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes) (Niemann et al, 2017). Elevated ROS levels are considered to be a risk factor for approximately half of male infertility cases among men diagnosed with sperm dysfunction (Kumar and Singh, 2018). The increase in antioxidants such as glutathione and superoxide dismutase can eliminate ROS and further improve oxidative stress and ERS (Liu et al, 2015). Lycium barbarum polysaccharide (LBP), a natural plant polysaccharide extracted from the Chinese herb L. barbarum has shown promising therapeutic effects in overcoming the same
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