The Anti-fertility Effects of Acacia nilotica in Male Wistar Rats

BACKGROUND: A bulk of contraceptives on the market is women-oriented today. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of a medicinal herb, Acacia nilotica on various parameters of male fertility using a rat model. METHODS: Male Wistar rats (n = 40) were randomly divided in to two groups. One group received Acacia nilotica, while the other acted as controls. Ten animals from each group were sacrificed after 16 weeks. Treatment was withdrawn for the remaining animals for 8 weeks. Blood was collected for hormonal analysis. The testis was removed for histological examination, while epididymal spermatozoa were retrieved for motility and morphological analysis. The data were analyzed using ANOVA and Bonferroni post hoc test. A value of p<0.05 was considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Sperm motility, progressive motility and sperm concentration significantly decreased in treated animals compared to the controls (p<0.05). Withdrawing the treatment did not restore these parameters (p<0.05). Abnormal sperm morphology significantly increased in both the treated and treatment withdrawn groups when compared to the controls (p<0.05). Testosterone concentrations were significantly lower in the treated group when compared to the controls (p<0.05) and no significant differences were observed between the controls and the treated animals when treatment was withdrawn. Histological observations showed that Acacia nilotica treatment disrupted semeniferous tubule architechture and consequently the spermatogenesis process. CONCLUSION: These results show that Acacia nilotica severely affects sperm morphology, progressive motility and sperm concentration irreversibly in Wistar rats.