Shortwave radiation-induced reproductive organ damage in male rats by enhanced expression of molecules associated with the calpain/Cdk5 pathway and oxidative stress

ABSTRACT

Shortwave radiation has been reported to have harmful effects on several organs in humans and animals. However, the biological effects of 27 MHz shortwave on the reproductive system are not clear. In this study, we investigated the effects of shortwave whole-body exposure at a frequency of 27 MHz on structural and functional changes in the testis. Male Wistar rats were exposed to 27 MHz continuous shortwaves at average power densities of 0, 5, 10, or 30 mW/cm² for 6 min. The levels of insulin-like factor 3 (INSL3) and anti-sperm antibodies (AsAb) in the peripheral serum, sperm motility, sperm malformation rate, and testicular tissue structure of rats were analyzed. Furthermore, the activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), malondialdehyde (MDA) content, calpain, and Cdk5 expression were analyzed at 1, 7, 14, and 28 days after exposure. We observed that the rats after radiation had decreased serum INSL3 levels (p < 0.01), increased AsAb levels (p < 0.05), decreased percentage of class A+B sperm (p < 0.01 or p < 0.05), increased sperm malformation (p < 0.01 or p < 0.05), injured testicular tissue structure, decreased SOD and CAT activities (p < 0.01 or p < 0.05), increased MDA content (p < 0.01), and testicular tissue expressions of calpain1, calpain2, and Cdk5 were increased (p < 0.01 or p < 0.05). In conclusion, Shortwave radiation caused functional and structural damage to the reproductive organs of male rats. Furthermore, oxidative stress and key molecules in the calpain/Cdk5 pathway are likely involved in this process.

SUMMARY

Shortwave radiation has been used in communications, medical and military applications, and its damaging effects on several organs of the human body have been reported in the literature. However, the biological effects of shortwave radiation on the male reproductive system are unknown. The present study, by constructing an animal model of short-wave radiation and analyzing the experimental results, revealed that shortwave radiation could cause functional and structural damage to the reproductive organs of male rats, and that oxidative stress and key molecules in the calpain/Cdk5 pathway might be involved in this process. It will provide organizational data for further studies on the mechanisms of male reproductive damage by shortwave radiation.

KEYWORDS:

• Shortwave radiation
• testicular
• function
• structure
• oxidative stress
• calpain
• Cdk5

Disclosure statement

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

Author contributions

Conceptualization, Binwei Yao and Junqi Men; Investigation, Shuchen Liu, Yanxin Bai and Chao Yu; Methodology, Yabing Gao, Xinping Xu, Li Zhao; Validation, Jing Zhang, Hui Wang and Yanyang Li;, Writing – original draft, Junqi Men; Writing – review & editing, Binwei Yao and Ruiyun Peng; Funding acquisition, Ruiyun Peng.

Authorship clarified

All authors agreed with the content and that all gave explicit consent to participate and publish.

Data availability statement

The authors would like to share the detailed/raw data privately with interested researchers.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a grant from the Key Projects of Health Specialty in the PLA Logistics Scientific Research Program (BWS15J011).