Abstract
To evaluate the penile morphological modifications of pubertal and adult rats chronically treated with supra-physiological doses of anabolic androgenic steroids. Forty-eight male Wistar rats were distributed into four groups: two control groups, 105- and 65-day-old (C105 and C65, respectively) injected with peanut oil (vehicle); and two treated groups, 105- and 65-day-old (T105 and T65, respectively) injected with nandrolone decanoate at a dose of 10 mg Kg-1 of body weight. The rats were injected once a week for eight weeks. The rats were then killed and their penises were processed for histomorphometric analyses. The mean of each parameter was statistically compared. A corpus cavernosum reduction of 12.5% and 10.9% was observed in the T105 and T65 groups, respectively, when compared with their respective control groups. The cavernosum smooth muscle surface density diminished by 5.6% and 12.9% in the T65 and T105 groups, respectively, when compared with their controls. In contrast, the sinusoidal space increased by 17% in the T105 group and decreased by 9.6% in the T65 group. The use of supra-physiological doses of AAS promotes structural changes in the rat penis, by altering the proportions of corpus cavernosum tissues, in both pubertal and adult treated animals.
Highlights
Anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) are synthetic testosterone derivatives that can have major effects on the human body
It is known that both testosterone and AAS diminish body fat and increase muscle mass and, improve athletic performance
The rats were distributed into four groups: control rats 105-day-old (C105) (n = 10), control rats 65-day-old (C65) (n = 14) injected only with the carrier, treated rats 105-day-old (T105) (n = 10), and treated rats 65-day-old (T65) (n = 14)
Summary
Anabolic androgenic steroids (AAS) are synthetic testosterone derivatives that can have major effects on the human body. It is known that both testosterone and AAS diminish body fat and increase muscle mass and, improve athletic performance. This effect has prompted indiscriminate AAS use by professional and amateur athletes, both youth and adults, in an attempt to improve their sport performance[1]. It is known that high doses of nandrolone decanoate reduce testicular volume and the length of the seminiferous tubules in rats[9]. AAS can decrease the weight and volume of the prostate, and increase the prostatic epithelium width in rats[10]
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