Varicocele is one of the main causes of infertility in men. Oxidative stress and consequently\napoptosis activation contribute to varicocele pathogenesis, worsening its prognosis. Natural products,\nsuch as lycopene, showed antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in several experimental models,\nalso in testes. In this study we investigated lycopene effects in an experimental model of varicocele.\nMale rats (n = 14) underwent sham operations and were administered with vehicle (n = 7) or\nwith lycopene (n = 7; 1 mg/kg i.p., daily). Another group of animals (n = 14) underwent surgical\nvaricocele. After 28 days, the sham and 7 varicocele animals were euthanized, and both operated and\ncontralateral testes were weighted and processed. The remaining rats were treated with lycopene\n(1 mg/kg i.p., daily) for 30 days. Varicocele rats showed reduced testosterone levels, testes weight,\nBcl-2 mRNA expression, changes in testes structure and increased malondialdehyde levels and BAX\ngene expression. TUNEL (Terminal Deoxynucleotidyl Transferase dUTP Nick End Labeling) assay\nshowed an increased number of apoptotic cells. Treatment with lycopene significantly increased\ntestosterone levels, testes weight, and Bcl-2 mRNA expression, improved tubular structure and\ndecreased malondialdehyde levels, BAX mRNA expression and TUNEL-positive cells. The present\nresults show that lycopene exerts beneficial eects in testes, and suggest that supplementation with\nthe tomato-derived carotenoid might be considered a novel nutraceutical strategy for the treatment of\nvaricocele and male infertility.
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