| Abstract: | Retrotestosterone (17beta-hydroxy 9beta 10alpha androst 4-en 3 one) (RT), testosterone propionate (TP), and a combination of TP and RT were administered to adult male rats in order to study the effects of such treatment on male sex organs and spermatogenesis. Although TP treatment did not produce significant reduction in testis weight, RT and RT+TP did. Seminal vesicle (SV) weight was increased by TP treatment and TP+RT treatment, but it was decreased with the RT treatment. Ventral prostate (VP) weight was increased significantly by TP and TP+RT treatment, whereas RT did not alter VP weight. The The pituitary weight of RT- and RT+TP-treated rats was significantly reduced but that of the TP rats was unaltered. Resting spermatocytes, pachytene spermatocytes, Stage 7 spermatids, and spermatogonia were increased in all treatment groups. In castrated rats, the increase in VP and SV weight was significant in the group treated with TP, but in the RT-treated group, S V and VP weights were significantly reduced. Simultaneous administration of TP and RT in 1:1, 1:4, and 1:8 ratios failed to produce statistically significant increases in SV and VP weight. The group treated with 1:20 ratio of RT:TP produced highly significant incre ases in SV and VP weights. In the spermatodynamic study, results showed that RT is comparatively more potent than TP in stimulating spermatogenesis. RT+TP treatment produced maximum increase in the count of resting and pachytene spermatocytes, whereas spermatogonia and Stage 7 spermatids were more than in the TP-treated group but less than in the RT-treated group. The findings indicate that RT is weakly androgenic and unable to stimulate accessory organs but that it is able to block the effect of endogenous androgen on the target tissue. |
