Protective effects of empagliflozin on testicular injury induced by torsion/detorsion in adult male rats

Abstract

Testicular torsion is a known urologic emergency condition and one of the common causes of infertility in males. Hence, prompt diagnosis and treatment play a crucial role in prevention of testicular injury. It has been observed that empagliflozin, a drug for management of hyperglycemia, has anti-oxidative properties against different pathologies, the most important of which are ischemia reperfusion related injuries. This study aims to evaluate the protective effects of empagliflozin on a testicular torsion injury in adolescent rats followed by ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) phenomena. Thirty-six rats were randomly assigned into three groups including sham-operated group received all surgical procedures except testicular torsion-detorsion, torsion/detorsion+dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) as vehicle, and torsion/detorsion+empagliflozin (10mg/kg). Testicular torsion was performed for 2h through rotating right testis 720° in the clockwise direction. Thirty minutes before detorsion, a single intraperitoneal dose of empagliflozin was injected to treatment group. Four hours later, orchiectomy was conducted for histopathological and biochemical examinations of testicular tissue specimens. The malondialdehyde (MDA) content in the torsion/detorsion animals was markedly greater than in the animals under sham operated procedure. Moreover, the testicular MDA levels in the torsion/detorsion+empagliflozin group were significantly lower than in the torsion/detorsion group. Also, significant decreases observed in catalase, superoxide dismutase, and glutathione peroxidase activities in the torsion/detorsion group in comparison with sham operated group. These values were significantly improved in the empagliflozin group. Furthermore, histopathological examinations also revealed severe testicular injury which were improved by empagliflozin administration. Empagliflozin prevented increases in oxidative stress markers and subsequently reduced the tissue injury induced by torsion/detorsion in the current study. It can be concluded that administration of empagliflozin before prevents I/R related cellular damage in testicular torsion, possibly via oxidative stress inhibition.