Endocrine Abstracts

Adult male rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) were given oral treatment of either Aroclor 1242 or vehicle (corn oil and glycerol) at a dose of 200 microgram/kg bw/day/animal for six months to investigate the effect of pollutant on plasma testosterone and morphology of testis and accessory glands. The animals used in this research have been treated humanely according to institutional guidelines, with due consideration to the alleviation of distress and discomfort. Aroclor 1242 treatment significantly decreased testicular size, declined testosterone levels in plasma and adversely affected spermatogenetic activity by disrupting epithelial organization. All the components of germinal epithelium reduced to a great extent. The spermatogonia were either hypertrophied or contained shrunken vesiculated cytoplasm containing distorted mitochondria and nuclei with variable degree of pyknosis. Sertoli cells were least affected by PCB treatment yet, nuclear infoldings were reduced to a considerable extent. Characteristic features of the treated Leydig cells were the presence of electron dense and electron opaque zones appearing as plaques, cell membrane abnormalities and high variability in nuclear shape and heterochromatin distribution. All the Aroclor 1242-treated accessory glands contained more connective tissue than their vehicle-treated counterparts. The epithelium contained many layers of irregular shaped necrotic cells that possessed stereocilia in the epididymides, either hypochromic and hypertrophied or hyperchromic and hypotrophied cells in the prostate and shrunken cuboidal cells with elongated nuclei in the seminal vesicles. It is concluded that Aroclor 1242 treatment cause severe structural alterations in gonads and accessory organs in adult male rhesus monkeys and these effects could have mediated through both estrogen and Ah receptors.