Relationship between acrylamide reproductive and neurotoxicity in male rats

Abstract

To determine whether there is a relationship between the reproductive and neurotoxic effects of acrylamide monomer (AM), the first week of the study design of Sublet et al. [14] was duplicated: Long–Evans male rats were gavaged with AM in water, 25/group, at 0, 5, 15, 30, 45, or 60 mg/kg/day for 5 days (days 1 through 5). On Day 8, males were paired overnight with untreated virgin females (1 : 1) in proestrus/estrus. On day 9, males were evaluated for forelimb and hindlimb grip strength. Five males/group were perfusion fixed, 20/group were used for andrologic assessment, and all were necropsied. Perfusion-fixed sciatic nerves were examined histologically. Sperm-positive females were examined for preimplantation and postimplantation loss at midpregnancy. At 15 to 60 mg/kg/day, males exhibited significantly reduced weight gain, reduced mating, fertility, and pregnancy indices by trend analysis (significant at 60 mg/kg/d by pairwise comparison), and increased postimplantation loss and dominant lethal factor, F L%, at 45 and 60 mg/kg/day. At 60 mg/kg/day, the sperm beat cross frequency was increased, with no significant effects on epididymal sperm motility or concentration, and hindlimb grip strength was decreased, with no pathologic lesions in sciatic nerves. Therefore, epididymal sperm, mating, and neurotoxic effects were observed at AM doses that also resulted in increased postimplantation loss, possibly by different mechanisms.