Protective effect of Basella alba and Carpolobia alba extracts against maneb-induced male infertility

Figures & data

Figure 1. Protocol of animal treatment for the evaluation of protective effect of AECa and MEBa against maneb toxicity. 2% SS: 2% starch solution, 10 ml/kg; 0.9% NaCl: NaCl 0.9%, 10 mL/kg bwt; MEBa: methanol extract of B. alba, 1 mg/kg; AECa: extract of C. alba, 0.1 mg/kg bwt.

Figure 2. Relative body weight of male rats treated with MEBa (A)/AECa (B) and/or maneb. The first batch of male rats was administered MEBa and/or 2% SS for 30 days (A), while the second batch received AECa and/or distilled water for 60 days (B). Maneb and 0.9% NaCl were administered during the 18 last days of the experiment. Relative body weight of each animal was determined using the formula ((At/A0) × 100%: At and A0 represent the animal body weight at the time considered, and at the beginning of the experiment, respectively). Each data point represents the mean ± SD of five animals.

Figure 3. Relative organ weights of male rats following treatment with MEBa (A)/AECa (B) and/or maneb. The first batch of male rats was administered MEBa and/or 2% SS for 30 days (A), while the second batch received AECa and/or distilled water for 60 days (B). Maneb and 0.9% NaCl were administered during the 18 last days of the experiment. Relative body weight of each organ was determined using the formula ((b/B) × 100%: b and B represent the organ weight and animal body weight, respectively). Each data point represents the mean ± SD of five animals.

Table 1. Fecundity and fertility indices of male rats treated with MEBa (A)/AECa (B) and/or maneb.

Batch	Treatment	Fecundity index (%)	Fertility index (pups/female)
Batch 1 (A)	2% SS + 0.9% NaCl	100	6.75 ± 2.86
	2% SS + maneb (4 mg/kg)	50	5.25 ± 0.83
	EMBa (1 mg/kg) + 0.9% NaCl	100	8.63 ± 0.48*
	EMBa (1 mg/kg) + maneb (4 mg/kg)	100	9.00 ± 0.71*
Batch 2 (B)	H2O + 0.9% NaCl	100	6.75 ± 1.68
	H2O + maneb (4 mg/kg)	50	5.25 ± 2.38
	AECa (0.1 mg/kg) + 0.9% NaCl	100	9.25 ± 1.64*
	AECa (0.1 mg/kg) + maneb (4 mg/kg)	75	8.33 ± 0.47*

Data represent percentage of male rats that fathered at least 1 viable pup (fecundity; %), or mean ± SD of viable pups per female rat with litter size of ≥1 (fertility index). 2% SS: 2% starch solution; MEBa: methanol extract of B. alba, AECa: aqueous extract of C. alba. Significant difference from the respective control group (2% SS + 0.9% NaCl and H₂O + 0.9% NaCl, for the batches 1 and 2, respectively) at *p < 0.05 (Kruskal–Wallis test).

Figure 4. Liver TBARS and GSH levels after treatment of male rats with MEBa (A)/AECa (B) and/or maneb. The first batch of male rats was administered MEBa and/or 2% SS for 30 days (A), while the second batch received AECa and/or distilled water for 60 days (B). Maneb and 0.9% NaCl were administered during the 18 last days of the experiment. The levels of thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) and glutathione (GSH) are expressed as mean ± SD of five animals.

Table 2. Serum alanine aminotransferase activity (ALT) of male rats following evaluation of the protective effect of MEBa (A) and AECa (B).

Batch	Treatment	ALT (UI/L)
Batch 1 (A)	2% SS + 0.9% NaCl	53.46 ± 4.03
	2% SS + maneb (4 mg/kg)	54.97 ± 5.99
	MEBa (1 mg/kg) + 0.9% NaCl	52.46 ± 1.23
	MEBa (1 mg/kg) + maneb (4 mg/kg)	47.94 ± 1.99
Batch 2 (B)	H20 + 0.9% NaCl	55.39 ± 2.51
	H20 + maneb (4 mg/kg)	62.25 ± 10.57
	AECa (0.1 mg/kg) + 0.9% NaCl	58.74 ± 2.81
	AECa (0.1 mg/kg) + maneb (4 mg/kg)	52.38 ± 4.61

Data represent mean ± SD of five animals per group. ALT: alanine aminotransferase.

Figure 5. Serum androstenedione levels in male rats treated with MEBa (A)/AECa (B) and/or maneb. The first batch of male rats was administered MEBa and/or 2% SS for 30 days (A), while the second batch received AECa and/or distilled water for 60 days (B). Maneb and 0.9% NaCl were administered during the 18 last days of the experiment. Data are expressed as mean ± SD of five animals per group. *p < 0.01, compared with the corresponding control group (group receiving neither plant extract nor maneb) (Student–Newman–Keuls test).

Figure 6. Serum testosterone levels of male rats treated with MEBa (A)/AECa (B) and/or maneb. The first batch of male rats was administered MEBa and/or 2% SS for 30 days (A), while the second batch received AECa and/or distilled water for 60 days (B). Maneb and 0.9% NaCl were administered during the 18 last days of the experiment. Data represent mean ± SD of five animals. ns: nonsignificant; *p < 0.05 and **p < 0.02, compared with the corresponding control group (group receiving neither plant extract nor maneb) (Student–Newman–Keuls test).