Abstract
Purpose: To analyze the effects of an aqueous extract of Sericea lespedeza (SL) on rat male menopause.Methods: Levels of nitric oxide (NO), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS), cGMP, and prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) in the penile corpus cavernosum of the rats were evaluated using appropriate kits. Serum levels of dihydrotestosterone (DHT), testosterone, sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG), and 17-beta hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (17β-HSD) were measured with enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. Total and motile sperms were counted on a hemocytometer. Histological changes in rat testis and epididymis were analyzed with hematoxylin and eosin staining.Results: The levels of NO, NOS, and cGMP (but not PGE2) increased in a dose-dependent manner (p< 0.05) upon administration of an aqueous extract of SL (AESL), while levels of DHT, 17β-HSD, and testosterone increased in the group administered with 300 mg/kg of AESL. Epididymal sperm count increased by 24 % in such rats compared to controls (p < 0.05).Conclusion: The aqueous extract of SL improves sperm count and muscle mass in rats by increasing the levels of NO, NOS, cGMP and testosterone. Thus, SL extract can potentially be developed as an alternative therapeutic agent for clinical management of TDS.
 Keywords: NO-cGMP, Testosterone, Hormones, Sperm count, Muscle mass, Sericea lespedeza, Lespedeza cuneata
Highlights
Hormones are generally classified as either anabolic or catabolic based on their effects within the organism
The average annual decline in total testosterone is 1 – 2 % in males age 39 to 70 years; the decline in free testosterone is more rapid because the level of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) increases with age [2,3]
Various concentrations of aqueous extract of SL (AESL) were added to Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) cells and nitric oxide (NO) levels were measured 24 h later
Summary
Hormones are generally classified as either anabolic or catabolic based on their effects within the organism. This study has been planned to evaluate the effects of AESL on rat blood testosterone, muscle mass, and sperm count. The NO levels of the homogenized cavernous supernatant were analyzed using a colorimetric Nitrite/Nitrate assay kit according to the manufacturer’s protocol (Sigma). The supernatant was collected by centrifugation at 516 × g, transferred to a new tube, and analyzed with a neuronal NOS kit (R&D Systems, Minneapolis, MN, USA) according to the manufacturer's protocol. For analysis of cGMP levels, a sample was made by adding 1:4 ethanol to the homogenized cavernosum and centrifuging at 516 × g for 10 min to remove non-specific proteins. The supernatant which the non-specific protein was removed was dried under reduced pressure, dissolved with the equal volume of PBS, and estimated using a cGMP EIA kit (Cayman, Ahn Arbor, MI, USA) according to the manufacturer's protocol. The significance of the statistical values was investigated via a one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by post hoc Tukey HDS test. p < 0.05 was taken to indicate significance
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