Effects of epichlorohydrin on male and female reproduction in Long-Evans rats. 1989

G P Toth, and H Zenick, and M K Smith
Reproductive and Developmental Biochemistry Branch, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Cincinnati, Ohio 45268.

Male and female Long-Evans rats were treated with epichlorohydrin (ECH) by oral gavage (males: 12.5, 25, and 50 mg/kg/day; females: 25, 50, and 100 mg/kg/day) for 21 and 14 days, respectively, prior to mating trials with untreated animals. Treated females were further dosed until delivery. Fertility was assayed in the high-dose males only and was found to be totally impaired. No measured parameters of female reproduction were changed relative to controls. Treated males showed normal copulatory behavior. Sperm morphology and percentage motile sperm were not statistically different from control values in both ejaculated and cauda epididymal samples from ECH-treated animals. The number of sperm in ejaculates was normal while cauda epididymal sperm count was slightly decreased in males at the 50 mg ECH/kg dose level. Mean curvilinear velocity, straight-line velocity, and amplitude of lateral head displacement of cauda epididymal sperm were significantly reduced by ECH at 12.5 mg/kg/day and above. Sperm track linearity was also reduced, but only at 50 mg/kg/day. Beat/cross frequency of sperm was significantly increased at 12.5 mg/kg/day and above. All of the above sperm motion parameters showed dose-dependent trends. These effects are consistent with the spermatozoal metabolic lesions reported for alpha-chlorohydrin, a metabolite of ECH.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D008297 Male Males
D009929 Organ Size The measurement of an organ in volume, mass, or heaviness. Organ Volume,Organ Weight,Size, Organ,Weight, Organ
D011247 Pregnancy The status during which female mammals carry their developing young (EMBRYOS or FETUSES) in utero before birth, beginning from FERTILIZATION to BIRTH. Gestation,Pregnancies
D012098 Reproduction The total process by which organisms produce offspring. (Stedman, 25th ed) Human Reproductive Index,Human Reproductive Indexes,Reproductive Period,Human Reproductive Indices,Index, Human Reproductive,Indexes, Human Reproductive,Indices, Human Reproductive,Period, Reproductive,Periods, Reproductive,Reproductive Index, Human,Reproductive Indices, Human,Reproductive Periods
D001835 Body Weight The mass or quantity of heaviness of an individual. It is expressed by units of pounds or kilograms. Body Weights,Weight, Body,Weights, Body
D002728 Chlorohydrins Any of the compounds derived from a group of glycols or polyhydroxy alcohols by chlorine substitution for part of the hydroxyl groups. (McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific and Technical Terms, 5th ed) Chlorhydrins
D003307 Copulation Sexual union of a male and a female in non-human species. Copulations
D004542 Ejaculation The emission of SEMEN to the exterior, resulting from the contraction of muscles surrounding the male internal urogenital ducts. Ejaculations
D004811 Epichlorohydrin A chlorinated epoxy compound used as an industrial solvent. It is a strong skin irritant and carcinogen. Epichlorhydrin,Epichlorohydrin, (+-)-Isomer,Epichlorohydrin, (S)-Isomer
D005260 Female Females

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