Document Type : Original Articles
Authors
1
Anatomy, Basic Medical Science, Osun State University, Osogbo, Nigeria.
2
Department of medical laboratory sciences, college of basic medical and health sciences, Fountain University Osogbo
3
Department of Medical Laboratory Sciences, College of health sciences, Mcpherson University
4
Faculty of Nursing Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Trinity University,Lagos
5
Anatomy department, Basic Medical Science, Federal university Oye-Ekiti, Ekiti State,Nigeria.
10.22092/ari.2025.368256.3497
Abstract
The Osun River, like many water bodies worldwide, is vulnerable to contamination from industrial, agricultural, and domestic sources, leading to heavy metal pollution. Pollutants such as lead, mercury, cadmium, and arsenic are common and can accumulate in aquatic environments, posing significant health risks to living organisms, including humans. Even at low concentrations, heavy metals can be toxic, with the testes being particularly susceptible due to their critical role in reproduction and hormonal regulation. Therefore, this study aims to assess the potential damage to the testes resulting from prolonged exposure to Osun River water contaminated with heavy metals.
Thirty adult male wistar rats with an average weight of 160g were used for this research and the animals were randomly divided into six groups (A,B,C,D,E,F) with each group comprising of five rats. Group A (served as control), Group B were induced with Mercury (6.8mg/kg), Group C were induced with Cyanide (25.8 mg/kg), Group D were induced with Lead (47mg/kg), Group E were induced with Mercury + Cyanide + Lead, Group F took Osun water as an ad libitum. Drug administration was done orally using oral cannula for four weeks.
The statistical analysis showed that there is no significant different among the groups that were administered differently with Mercury, Cyanide, Lead and Osun river.
The toxic effects of mercury, lead, and cyanide on reproductive organs are remarkably similar when each is administered separately. In the testes, the most significant changes include disorganization of seminiferous tubules, alterations in spermatogenic cell arrangement, structural changes in the basal membrane, abnormalities in the testicular stroma, and reduced sperm count, motility, and viability, along with altered sperm morphology. These adverse effects on the architecture of reproductive organs are dose- and time-dependent and generally occur at low concentrations.
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