Male contraceptive efficacy of poly herbal formulation, contracept-TM, composed of aqueous extracts of Terminalia chebula fruit and Musa balbisiana seed in rat

Abstract

Context: Terminalia chebula Retz (Combretaceae) and Musa balbisiana Colla (Musaceae) have a traditional reputation as a male contraceptive.

Objective: To determine the hypo-testicular activity of aqueous extracts of Terminalia chebula (fruit) and Musa balbisiana (seed) separately, and in composite manner at the ratio of 1:1 named as ‘Contracept-TM’ compared to cyproterone acetate (CPA), for developing a polyherbal contraceptive.

Materials and methods: The separate extract of above said plants or ‘Contracept-TM’ at the dose of 40 mg/100 g body weight of rat/day or CPA at 2 mg/100 g body weight of rat/day was administered for 28 days. Spermiological, androgenic and oxidative stress sensors, LD₅₀ and ED₅₀/100 g body weight values were measured.

Results: Treatment of individual, ‘Contracept-TM’ or CPA resulted significant decrease in the count of spermatogonia A (36.36–49.09%), pre-leptotene spermatocyte (19.11–55.30%), mid-pachytene spermatocyte (28.65–47.28%) and step 7 spermatid (29.65–51.59%). Activities of testicular Δ⁵, 3β (21.25–48.02%),17β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenases (29.75–55.08%), catalase (19.06–43.29%) and peroxidase (30.76–62.82%), levels of testosterone (28.15–63.44%), testicular cholesterol (19.61–49.33%), conjugated diene (29.69–84.99%) and thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (41.25–86.73%) were elevated compare to the control. The ED₅₀ and LD₅₀ values were 40 mg and 5.8 g (T. chebula), 48 mg and 6.3 g (M. bulbisiana), 40 mg and 6.0 g (‘Contracept-TM’), respectively.

Discussion and conclusion: The said spermiological and androgenic sensors’ levels were decreased significantly by ‘Contracept-TM’ than its constitutional individual plant extract and it may be comparable to standard anti-testicular drug like CPA. So, it may be concluded that above polyherbal formulation is potent for inducing hypo-testicular activity.

Keywords:

• Androgenesis
• antitesticular activity
• cyproterone acetate
• oxidative stress
• spermatogenesis
• sperm motility
• sperm viability
• steroidogenesis

Disclosure statement

The authors have declared that there is no conflict of interest.