Table 1.
Summary of MC-LR doses used and effects observed from both in vitro and in vivo studies.
| Test organism/system | Method | Time of exposure | MC-LR concentration | Outcome | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| In vitro studies | |||||
| MC-LR distribution | |||||
| Primary cultured spermatogonia | Western blot LC-MS |
6 h | 500 nM | Presence of MC-LR | [25] |
| Sertoli cells | 48 h | Presence of MC-LR | |||
| Leydig cells | 2 h | Not detected | |||
| Apoptosis | |||||
| Sertoli cells | RT-PCR | 24 h | 0, *1 and *10 μg/ml | *Condensed chromatin and fragmented DNA | [32] |
| Western blot | |||||
| Cytotoxicity | |||||
| Spermatogonia | Cell viability assay | 6 h | 0, 0.5*, 5*, 50* and 500* nmol/L | *Decreased significantly | [28] |
| FDA and PI staining | *Apoptosis increased significantly | ||||
| Antioxidant capacity | *Significantly decreased | ||||
| ROS formation | *Increased significantly | ||||
| Western blot | *Oatp 3a1 intensity increased | ||||
| Cytotoxicity | |||||
| Leydig cells | FDA and PI staining | 12, *24b and *48 h | 0, 0.5c, *5 a, *50 or *500b nM | Decreased significantly *Apoptosis induceda * ROS and LPO increases, a*SOD decreases *Drops significantlybc |
[18] |
| Oxidative stress | |||||
| Hormone estimation | |||||
| Cytotoxicity | |||||
| Primary rat sertoli cells | Cell viability assaya | 6, 12, and 24 ha | 0 μg/L, *0.15 μg/L, *1.5 μg/L and *15c μg/L | *No significant difference | [38] |
| LDH | *Increases slightlyc | ||||
| SOD | *Differs significantlya | ||||
| ROS | *Increases significantlyc | ||||
| LPO | *No significant difference | ||||
| In vivo studies | |||||
| Mice testes and epididymides | Serum hormone assay | 3 and *6 m | 0, 1, *3.2 and *10a μg/L (Orally) | *Testosterone level decreases | [23] |
| Sperm analysis | *Sperm motility and count decreases | ||||
| TUNEL staining | *Apoptosis occurs | ||||
| Histopathological evaluation | *Testicular atrophy Lumen of the seminiferous tubules enlargesa | ||||
| Male mice testes | Micronucleus assay | 14 days | 0, 3,*6 and*12 μg/kg bw (peritoneal) | *Micronucleus rate increases | [36] |
| DPC coefficient | 7 days | *DPC coefficient increases | |||
| Male rat testes | TUNEL staining | 1, 2, 4.*6,*12 and *24a h | *80.5 μg/kg bw (intravenous) | *Apoptosis increases significantly *Elevation of FasL and Fas, downstream effectors-FADD, caspase-8, Apaf-1, caspase-9 and caspase-3a |
[34] |
| Western blot | |||||
| RT-PCR | |||||
| Male mice testes | Serum hormone assay | 1, 4, 7 and 14 days | 3.75, 7.5, 15 and 30 μg/kg bw (intraperitoneal) | Levels of FSH, testosterone, LH fluctuates with dose and duration FSHβ and LHβ expression varies with dose and duration GnRH was down regulated |
[20] |
| RT-PCR | |||||
| Male mice testes | 13 h and 4 days 13 h | 3.75, 7.5a, *15 and *30 μg/kg bw (intraperitoneal) | *Phosphorylation p53 and Bcl-2a *Modulation of c-myc, c-jun, c-fos, Bax, caspase 3 and caspase 8 *Apoptosis occurs *Loss and derangement of spermatogonic cells Lumen enlargement, thinning of spermatogenic epithelium were observed |
[25] | |
| RT PCR Western blot | |||||
| TUNEL staining | |||||
| Histopathological evaluation | |||||
| Male rat testes | TEM | 50 days | 1a and *10 μg/kg bw (intraperitoneal) | *Condensation and margination of chromatin *Shrunk spermatogonia, mitochondria swollen |
[22] |
| Hormone assay | *FSH and LH increases significantly *Testosterone decreases |
||||
| ROS | *ROS increases significantly | ||||
| RT-PCR | *All 8 mitochondrial genes were elevated | ||||
| Male rat testes | Serum hormone assay | 28 days | 0,*5, *10 or *15b μg/kg bw (intraperitoneal) | *FSH and LH increases and decreases in higher dosesb ROS and LPO increases *Enlargement of seminiferous tubules *Decreases significantly |
[18] |
| Sperm analysis | |||||
| ROS and LPO | |||||
| Histopathology | |||||
| Testosterone level | |||||
*,a,b refers to the result obtained for the corresponding doses of MC-LR concentration used both in vitro and in vivo studies.