Abstract

Our study examined the effects on rat reproductive parameters of Flunixin Meglumine (FM) and its concomitant treatment with Alpha Lipoic Acid (ALA). FM was given to male rats with or without ALA at a concentration of 2.5 and 5 mg./kg. bwt, while ALA was in a dose level of 100mg/ kg body weight. Along with semen characteristics include total sperm count, total sperm abnormalities and progressive sperm motility, the index weights of the accessory sex glands, epididymis, and testis were examined. 72 adult male albino rats were used in this study. During the fourth and eighth weeks from the beginning of the experiment, the index weights of the testis didn’t significantly change in any of the treatment groups during comparison with the control group. However, the index weight of the epididymis significantly reduced in the group that was treated with FM at a dose level of 5 mg/kg in the fourth week, whereas there was a notable increase in the group that received FM at the same dosage concomitant with ALA. In terms of semen properties, progressive sperm motility significantly decreased in the fourth and eighth weeks after FM treatment at a dose level of 5 mg/kg. The FM-treated groups' total sperm count significantly decreased during both time periods, whereas the ALA-only group's sperm count significantly increased on 8th week of the experiment. At both times, the FM-treated groups had a significantly increased total number of sperm abnormalities. In summary, the administration of FM for 14 consecutive days had a negative impact on reproductive indicators. Co-administration of ALA, however, mitigated some of these effects, indicating that ALA may have a protective function in maintaining reproductive function when FM is present.

Key words: Flunixin Meglumine, Alpha-Lipoic Acid, rats, reproductive parameters, semen characteristics