SIRT 3 was involved in Lycium barbarum seed oil protection testis from oxidative stress: in vitro and in vivo analyses

Abstract

Context

Lycium barbarum L. (Solanaceae) seed oil (LBSO) exerts LBSO exerts protective effects in the testis in vivo and in vitro via upregulating SIRT3.

Objective

This study evaluates the effects and mechanism of LBSO in the d-galactose (d-gal)-induced ageing testis.

Materials and methods

Male Sprague Dawley (SD) rats (n = 30, 8-week-old) were randomly divided into three groups: LBSO group (n = 10) where rats received subcutaneous injection of d-gal at 125 mg/kg/day for 8 weeks and intragastric administration of LBSO at 1000 mg/kg/day for 4 weeks, ageing model group (n = 10) received 8-week-sunbcutaneous injection of d-gal, and control group (n = 10) with same administration of normal saline. Lentivirus had established TM4 cells with SIRT3 overexpression or silencing before LBSO intervened in vitro.

Results

Treatment with LBSO, the levels of INHB and testosterone both increased, compared to ageing model. In vitro, we found the ED₅₀ of LBSO was 86.72 ± 1.49 and when the concentration of LBSO at 100 μg/mL to intervene TM4 cells, the number of cells increased from 8120 ± 676.2 to 15251 ± 1119, and the expression of SIRT3, HO-1, and SOD upregulated. However, HO-1 and SOD were dysregulated by silencing SIRT3. On the other hand, the expression of AMPK and PGC-1α upregulated as an effect of SIRT3 overexpression by lentivirus, meanwhile the same increasing trend of that being found in cells treated with LBSO, compared to control group.

Discussion and conclusions

LBSO alleviated oxidative stress in d-gal-induced sub-acutely ageing testis and TM4 cells by suppressing the oxidative stress to mitochondria via SIRT3/AMPK/PGC-1α.

Keywords:

• Sertoli cells (TM4)
• anti-ageing
• ethic medicine

Author contributions

Zhangjie Yang and Yuxin Wang carried out the studies, participated in collecting data, and drafted the manuscript. Shuai Zhao and Na Hu performed the statistical analysis and participated in its design. Dongmei Chen and Huiming Ma participated in acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data and draft the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was funded by National Natural Science Foundation of China, grant number 81860876 and Ningxia Natural Science Foundation, grant number 2020AAC022016.