Iranian Journal of animal Science

Iranian Journal of animal Science

The effect of dietary Letrozole on plasma gonadotropin concentrations and some testicular histology parameters in 40 weeks old broiler breeder rooster

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors
Emad Abdulgabbar Ali 1
Mahdi Zhandi 2
Armin Towhidi 3
Mojtaba Zaghari 3
Mahdi Ansari 1
1 Ph. D. Candidate, Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran
2 Associate Professor, Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran
3 Professor, Department of Animal Science, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj, Iran
10.22059/ijas.2017.231769.653523
Abstract
The current study was carried out to evaluate the effect of Letrozole feeding on plasma LH and FSH concentrations and testicular histology in Ross 308 broiler breeder roosters. Twenty 40-week old roosters were randomly divided into four groups, individually housed and fed different levels of capsulated Letrozole including 0 (L0), 0.5 (L0.5), 1 (L1) or 1.5 (L1.5) mg/bird/day for 12 consecutive weeks. Blood sampling was done on 1th, 3th, 5th, 7th and 9th weeks of trail. Testicular histology was assessed on samples from last week (12th) of experiment. According to the results, plasma LH and FSH levels, seminiferous tubule diameter and epithelium thickness as well as Leydig cell numbers were significantly increased in Letrozole treated groups compered to control group. The highest concentration of FSH and LH were recorded for L1 (10.39 ±0.11 and 2.93±0.08) and L1.5 (9.5±0.2 and 3.17±0.08) groups, respectively. Both L0.5 and L1 groups had significantly higher spermatogonial numbers than control group. However, blood vessel numbers were not significantly affected. In conclusion, orally feeding Letrozole (1 and 1.5 mg) could improve gonadotropin concentration and testicular histology parameters of male broiler breeders at 40 weeks of age. Further studied are needed to confirm these results and extend them to final fertility.
Keywords
Gonadotropin
letrozole
Rooster
spermatogonium
testis histology
  1. Altoe, P. M., Tatsuo, E. S., Paulo, D. N. S., Jarske, R., Milagres, M. & Loureiro, I.D. (2014). Effects of human chorionic gonadotropin on the normal testicular tissue of rats. Acta Cirurgica Brasileira, 29, 292-298.
  2. Alward, B. A., de Bournonville, C., Chan, T. T., Balthazart, J., Cornil, C. A. & Ball, G. F. (2016). Aromatase inhibition rapidly affects in a reversible manner distinct features of birdsong. Scientific Reports 6, 1-9.
  3. Balthazart, J., Phillipe, A., Veronique, F. & Ball, G. F. (1994). Effects of the Aromatase Inhibitor R76713 on Sexual Differentiation of Brain and Behavior in Zebra Finches. Behaviour 131, 225-260.
  4. Carreau, S., Lambard, S., Delalande, C., Denis-Galeraud, I., Bilinska, B. & Bourguiba, S. (2003). Aromatase expression and role of estrogens in male gonad: a review. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 1, 35-41.
  5. Cavallini, G., Beretta, G. & Biagiotti, G. (2011). Preliminary study of letrozole use for improving spermatogenesis in non-obstructive azoospermia patients with normal serum FSH. Asian Journal of Andrology, 13, 895-897.
  6. Cavallini, G., Biagiotti, G. & Bolzon, E. (2013). Multivariate analysis to predict letrozole efficacy in improving sperm count of non-obstructive azoospermic and cryptozoospermic patients: a pilot study. Asian Journal of Andrology, 15, 806-811.
  7. Chang, C., Chen, Y. T., Yeh, S. D., Xu, Q., Wang, R. S., Guillou, F., Lardy, H. & Yeh, S. (2004). Infertility with defective spermatogenesis and hypotestosteronemia in male mice lacking the androgen receptor in Sertoli cells. Proceeding of the National Academy of Sciences USA, 101, 6876-6881.
  8. Dabaja, A. A. & Schlegel, P. N. (2014). Medical treatment of male infertility. Translational Andrology and Urology, 3, 9-16
  9. de Ronde, W. & de Jong, F.H. (2011). Aromatase inhibitors in men: effects and therapeutic options. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 9, 93-99
  10. Dimitriadis, F., Tsiampali, C., Chaliasos, N., Tsounapi, P., Takenaka, A. & Sofikitis, N. (2015). The Sertoli cell as the orchestra conductor of spermatogenesis: spermatogenic cells dance to the tune of testosterone. Hormones, 14, 479-503.
  11. Feng, Y., Ding, Y., Liu, J., Tian, Y., Yang, Y., Guan, S. & Zhang, C. (2015). Effects of dietary omega-3/omega-6 fatty acid ratios on reproduction in the young breeder rooster. BMC Veterinary Research, 11, 73-79.
  12. Heng, D., Zhang, T., Tian, Y., Yu, S., Liu, W., Xu, K., Liu, J., Ding, Y., Zhu, B., Yang, Y. & Zhang, C. (2017). Effects of dietary soybean isoflavones (SI) on reproduction in the young breeder rooster. Animal Reproduction Science, 177, 124-131.
  13. Hocking, P. & Bernard, R. (2000). Effects of the age of male and female broiler breeders on sexual behaviour, fertility and hatchability of eggs. British Poultry Science, 41, 370-376.
  14. Huang, H. F. S., Li, M. T., Wang, S., Pogach, L. M. & Ottenweller, J. E. (2003). Alteration Of Cyclic Adenosine 3’,5’-Monophosphate Signaling In Rat Testicular Cells After Spinal Cord Injury. The Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, 26, 69-78.
  15. Islam, M. N., Zhu, Z. B., Aoyama, M. & Sugita, S. (2010). Histological and morphometric analyses of seasonal testicular variations in the Jungle Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos). Anatomical Science International, 85, 121-129.
  16. Karnon, J. (2006). Aromatase Inhibitors in Breast Cancer. PharmacoEconomics, 24, 215-232.
  17. Kim, J. H., Park, S. J., Kim, T. S., Kim, J. M. & Lee, D. S. (2016). Testosterone production by a Leydig tumor cell line is suppressed by hyperthermia-induced endoplasmic reticulum stress in mice. Life Sciences 146, 184-191
  18. Midzak, A. S., Chen, H., Papadopoulos, V. & Zirkin, B. R. (2009). Leydig cell aging and the mechanisms of reduced testosterone synthesis. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 299, 23-31.
  19. Moss, J. L., Crosnoe, L. E. & Kim, E. D. (2013). Effect of rejuvenation hormones on spermatogenesis. Fertility and Sterility, 99, 1814-1820.
  20. Okwun, O. E., Igboeli, G., Ford, J. J., Lunstra, D. D. & Johnson, L. (1996). Number and function of Sertoli cells, number and yield of spermatogonia, and daily sperm production in three breeds of boar. Journal of Reproduction and Fertility, 107, 137-149.
  21. Ramaswamy, S. & Plant, T. M. (2001). Operation of the follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH)–inhibin B feedback loop in the control of primate spermatogenesis. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 180, 93-101.
  22. Raven, G., de Jong, F. H., Kaufman, J. M. & de Ronde, W. (2006). In men, peripheral estradiol levels directly reflect the action of estrogens at the hypothalamo-pituitary level to inhibit gonadotropin secretion. Journal of  Clinical Endocrinology and  Metabolism, 91, 3324-8
  23. Ribeiro, M. A., Gameiro, L. F., Scarano, W. R., Briton-Jones, C., Kapoor, A., Rosa, M. B. & El Dib, R. (2016). Aromatase inhibitors in the treatment of oligozoospermic or azoospermic men: a systematic review of randomized controlled trials. JBRA Assisted Reproduction, 20, 82-88.
  24. Romero-Sanchez, H., Plumstead, P., Leksrisompong, N., Brannan, K. & Brake, J. (2008). Feeding broiler breeder males. 4. Deficient feed allocation reduces fertility and broiler progeny body weight. Poultry science, 87, 805-811.
  25. Sarabia Fragoso, J., Pizarro Diaz, M., Abad Moreno, J. C., Casanovas Infesta, P., Rodriguez-Bertos, A. & Barger, K. (2013). Relationships between fertility and some parameters in male broiler breeders (body and testicular weight, histology and immunohistochemistry of testes, spermatogenesis and hormonal levels). Reproduction in Domestic Animals, 48, 345-352.
  26. Saylam, B., Efesoy, O. & Cayan, S. (2011). The effect of aromatase inhibitor letrozole on body mass index, serum hormones, and sperm parameters in infertile men. Fertility and Sterility, 95, 809-811.
  27. Smith, I. E. & Dowsett, M. (2003). Aromatase Inhibitors in Breast Cancer. New England Journal of Medicine, 348, 2431-2442.
  28. T'Sjoen, G. G., Giagulli, V. A., Delva, H., Crabbe, P., De Bacquer, D. & Kaufman, J. M. (2005). Comparative assessment in young and elderly men of the gonadotropin response to aromatase inhibition. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 90, 5717-5722.
  29. Tsutsui, K., Ubuka, T., Bentley, G. E. & Kriegsfeld, L. J. (2013). Review: regulatory mechanisms of gonadotropin-inhibitory hormone (GnIH) synthesis and release in photoperiodic animals. Frontiers in Neuroscience, 7, 1-17.
  30. Vizcarra, J. A., Kirby, J. D. & Kreider, D. L. (2010). Testis development and gonadotropin secretion in broiler breeder males. Poultry Science, 89, 328-334.
  31. Weil, S., Rozenboim, I., Degen, A. A., Dawson, A., Friedländer, M. & Rosenstrauch, A. (1999). Fertility decline in aging roosters is related to increase testicular and plasma levels of estradiol. General and Comparative Endocrinology, 115, 23-28.
  32. Xu, Y. C., Li, J., Liang, W. B. & Zhu, W. J. (2013). Evaluation on Changes of Testicular Histology in Aging Men. Journal of Reproduction and Contraception, 24, 199-204.
Iranian Journal of animal Science
Volume 48, Issue 2 - Serial Number 2
Summer 2017
Pages 175-183

  • Receive Date 22 April 2017
  • Revise Date 29 May 2017
  • Accept Date 31 May 2017