The protective effect of vitamin E on morphological and biochemical alteration induced by pre and postnatal ethanol administration in the testis of male rat offspring: A three months follow-up study

Dysmorphology and dysfunction caused by prenatal ethanol consumption
in different organs of the offspring are wellknown phenomena. The objective of
the present study was to explore the antioxidant effect of vitamin E supplementation
on testis damage induced by maternal ethanol consumption during pregnancy and
early postnatal days.
Methods: Pregnant Wistar rats on gestation day 7 were assigned to 3 groups, namely,
control, ethanol and ethanol-vitamin E groups. Ethanol-treated rats received 4.5
g/kg BW ethanol once per day from day 7 and the procedure continued through
postnatal day 21. Vitamin E group received 300 mg of vitamin E and the same
amount of ethanol. The male offspring from each group were anesthetized by 10%
chloral hydrate (0.5 ml/kg body weight) on day 21 and 90 (n=8 offspring form each
group on day 21 and day 90). The results were analyzed by one-way ANOVA. A
p<0.05 was considered significant.
Results: The results revealed significant (p<0.05) changes in oxidative stress parameters,
luteinizing hormone and follicle-stimulating hormone, as well as testis structural
alteration in offspring of ethanol group after 21 and 90 days of birth as compared
to the control. Significant amelioration of changes in testis structure, along
with restoration of the elevated level of oxidative stress parameters were found in
vitamin E-treated animals.
Conclusion: The findings revealed that prenatal and postnatal ethanol-induced toxicity
in testis was exerted through oxidative stress and implied that these effects
could be alleviated by vitamin E as an antioxidant.