Protective Role of All-Trans Retinoic Acid Against Ipsilateral Testicu-lar Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury in Male Wistar Rats.

Authors

Richard Adedamola Ajike, Oladele Ayobami Afolabi, Oluwaseun Samuel Hezekiah, Ezekiel Oladele Ojo, Ola-Jide Abraham Amao, Dorcas Titilayo Akinyemi, Bamidele Oluwole Olusola, Onaopepo Abdulwakeel Lawal, Peace Peter Adekunleoke

Published in

JBRA assisted reproduction. Oct 02, 2026. Epub Oct 02, 2026.

Abstract

Testicular torsion (TT) may cause testicular necrosis. Although restoration of blood flow is essential to prevent testicular loss, reperfusion may induce testicular ischemia-reperfusion injury (TIRI), leading to testicular damage and potentially long-term infertility. All-trans reti-noic acid (ATRA) has been shown to enhance the transcrip-tion of antioxidant enzymes and anti-apoptotic proteins, inhibit NF-κB-mediated transcription of inflammatory cyto-kines, and support germ-cell differentiation and spermato-genesis. This study investigated the protective effect of ATRA on the ipsilateral testis following unilateral testicular torsion/detorsion.
Twenty-four male Wistar rats were divided into four groups (n=6): Sham, Torsion/Detorsion (TD), AT-RA+TD (7.5mg/kg administered 3 days before TIRI induc-tion), and TD+ATRA (7.5mg/kg administered 3 days after TIRI induction). Torsion was induced for 1 hour and was followed immediately by detorsion.
TD reduced the levels of reproductive hormones (testosterone and inhibin), Bcl-2, sperm indices, SOD, CAT, GPx, GST, GSH, and total protein, with concomitant increas-es in testicular MDA, NO, TNF-α, MPO, IL-6, NF-κB, Bax, caspase-3, DFI, and 8-OHdG levels. Histological evaluation of TD rats revealed reduced spermatogenesis indices, disrup-tion of the seminiferous tubules, germ-cell loss, and vascular congestion. ATRA treatment significantly improved antioxi-dant enzyme activity, downregulated NF-κB and Bax signal-ing, restored reproductive hormones and sperm parameters, and protected testicular and epididymal structures.
ATRA protects against ipsilateral testicu-lar damage following torsion/detorsion, as shown by res-toration of depleted antioxidant enzymes, downregulation of inflammatory and pro-apoptotic markers, and enhance-ment of spermatogenesis and hormonal balance. These findings support the potential role of ATRA in preserving fertility after testicular torsion/detorsion.

PMID:
42825640
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 02 Oct 2026.

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