Open Access
Research (Published online: 15-02-2023)
8. Therapeutic approaches for anti-sperm-antibodies in the testicular sperm aspiration rat model
Abdel-Kader A. Zaki, Fahad S. Aldahmashi, Abd El-Nasser A. Madboli, Kamal A. Attia, Fahad S. Almulhim, and Saleh M. Albarrak
Veterinary World, 16(2): 296-308

Abdel-Kader A. Zaki: Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia; Department of Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Cairo University, Giza, Egypt.
Fahad S. Aldahmashi: Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia; Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia.
Abd El-Nasser A. Madboli: Department of Animal Reproduction and Artificial Insemination, National Research Center, Veterinary Research Institute, Giza, Egypt.
Kamal A. Attia: Department of Biology, Al-Jammoum University College, Umm-Alqura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia.
Fahad S. Almulhim: Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia; Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture, Qassim Region, Saudi Arabia.
Saleh M. Albarrak: Department of Veterinary Medicine, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Qassim University, Buraydah, Saudi Arabia.

doi: www.doi.org/10.14202/vetworld.2023.296-308

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Article history: Received: 18-10-2022, Accepted: 09-01-2023, Published online: 15-02-2023

Corresponding author: Saleh M. Albarrak

E-mail: salbarrak@qu.edu.sa

Citation: Zaki AA, Aldahmashi FS, Madboli AA, Attia KA, Almulhim FS, and Albarrak SM (2023) Therapeutic approaches for anti-sperm-antibodies in the testicular sperm aspiration rat model, Veterinary World, 16(2): 296–308.
Abstract

Background and Aim: Anti-sperm antibodies (ASAs) treatment continued to be neglected. This study aimed to generate ASAs using the testicular sperm aspiration (TSA) rat model, which allowed for investigation of four distinct therapeutic approaches to find potential treatments for ASAs.

Materials and Methods: Adult Wistar albino male rats were divided into six equal groups (n = 12). The negative control group underwent scrotal sac surgery without having their testicles punctured. Punctures were made in the remaining 5 groups, with one group left untreated to serve as the positive control group. The remaining 4 groups were treated with either dexamethasone (DEX), azathioprine (AZA), frankincense, or anti-ASAs secondary antibodies. For 10 weeks, serum samples were collected every 2 weeks for specific quantification of ASAs. Testis and epididymis tissues were collected for histopathological analysis.

Results: The ASAs concentrations of the positive controls were significantly higher (p ≤ 0.001) than their negative control counterparts during the examined weeks. However, The ASAs indices (%) differed according to the treatment type. While the ASAs indices at the 2nd and 4th weeks in the AZA-treated group were significantly reduced compared to the positive control group (p ≤ 0.001), no significant differences were observed at any of the sample collection week for the DEX-treated rats. The ASAs indices were significantly decreased only at weeks 6 and 8 of treatment in the frankincense-treated group (p ≤ 0.001). In the secondary antibodies-treated group, the antibody indices were significantly decreased in all weeks except for samples collected at week 4 (p ≤ 0.001). The testosterone levels reverted to normal only in TSA rats treated with either Frankincense or secondary antibodies, as they were significantly higher than the positive controls (p ≤ 0.05). Tissue samples from the secondary antibody-treated rats showed a generally normal histological appearance.

Conclusion: This study tried to offer realistic therapy suggestions; however, caution should be applied when extrapolating findings from experimental models to meet clinical requirements.

Keywords: anti-sperm antibody, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, infertility, testicular sperm aspiration, testosterone.