Protective roles of vitamin C and 5-aminosalicylic acid on reproduction in acrylamide intoxicated male mice

CONTEXT: Serious health risks have been connected to ongoing, escalating exposure to environmental toxins and one of them is acrylamide (ACR), an organic compound. Although there are many published reports on ACR toxicity, limited information is available regarding the use of two potential antioxidants against ACR-instigated reproductive toxicity. AIMS: The study focused on investigating the protective effects of vitamin C and 5-ASA against ACR-incited reproductive toxicity. METHODS: A total of 50 male mice aged 4 weeks old were treated for 90 days with different concentrations either of ACR or ACR and vitamin C or ACR and 5- ASA or ACR, vitamin C, and 5- ASA. KEY RESULTS: ACR significantly reduced serum testosterone level (p = 0.0037), sperm concentration (p = 0.0004), and percentage of sperm motility (p = 0.003), as well as increased sperm abnormality; head (p = 0.0058), tail (p = 0.001), and midpiece (p = 0.0339). Besides, the weight (p = 0.0006) and length (p = 0.0105) of testes, as well as weight (p = 0.0001) and length (p = 0.0021) of epididymis were decreased along with atrophy of seminiferous tubules of the testis, and disintegration of the tubular epithelium of epididymis on ACR exposed mice which were improved by vitamin C and 5-ASA administration. CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin C and 5-ASA can potentially mitigate the negative effects of ACR on male reproduction; however, combined application is recommended for better performance. IMPLICATIONS: In Bangladesh, this work is anticipated to address the health benefits of vitamin C and 5-ASA, particularly in improving the reproductive health of males against ACR toxicity.