Male Reproductive Effects of Lead, Including Species Extrapolation for the Rabbit Model

Details

• Personal Author:
  Chapin RE ; Clark JC ; Moorman WJ ; Murrell JA ; Schrader, Steven M. ; Sharpnack DD ; Simon SD ; Skaggs SR ; Turner TW
• Description:
  The effects of elevated blood lead on semen quality were evaluated in the rabbit model and compared to published effects in humans. Mature, male rabbits were given lead acetate by subcutaneous injection in the dose range of 0 to 3.85 mg/kg on a Monday-Wednesday-Friday basis. In each of eight treatment groups, a dosing regimen was developed to produce blood lead levels of 0, 20, 40, 50, 70, 80, 90, and 110 g/dL. A 5-week pre-exposure period was followed by a 15-week exposure testing period allowing for response through six cycles of the seminiferous epithelium. Semen analyses revealed that increased blood lead levels were associated with adverse changes in the sperm count, ejaculate volume, percent motile sperm, swimming velocities, and morphology. Hormonal responses were minimal. Testicular pathology revealed a dose-dependent inhibition of spermiation. For six measures of semen quality, threshold estimates ranged from 16 to 24 g/dL. Using the species extrapolation factor derived in this study, a rabbit dose would have to be divided by 1.56 to obtain the equivalent human dose for an equal percentage decrease in sperm concentration; however, rabbits are 3.75 more sensitive in terms of absolute decrease in sperm count for a given blood lead level. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Animals Blood Hematologic Tests Lead Men Occupational Health Safety Urogenital Diseases Urogenital System
• Keywords:
  Animal-studies Author Keywords: Lead Blood-analysis Blood-samples Blood-tests Blood Lead Lead-compounds Rabbit Model Reproductive-effects Reproductive-hazards Reproductive-system-disorders Semen Quality Spermatozoa

  More +
• ISSN:
  0890-6238
• Document Type:
  Text
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Ohio ; OSHA Region 5
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DBBS - Division of Biomedical and Behavioral Sciences
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  333-346
• Volume:
  12
• Issue:
  3
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20024978
• Citation:
  Reprod Toxicol 1998 May; 12(3):333-346
• Contact Point Address:
  William J Moorman, 4676 Columbia Parkway, MS C23: Cincinnati, Ohio 45215
• Email:
  wjm2@cdc.gov
• CAS Registry Number:
  Lead (CAS RN 7439-92-1)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  1998
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Source Full Name:
  Reproductive Toxicology
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:9686a75c03a1d946bbda39056b8e1525fdbe52f293205886666585566e9f49713bfc9986a842f93fdf513528729a08fa7b1100ceb310788b01c3b9fc053224d3
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/196519/cdc_196519_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 382.92 KB ]