Induction of Morphologically Abnormal Sperm in Rats Exposed to O-Xylene

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Abstract
An analysis of sperm abnormalities can be used as a rapid method to determine the mutagenic potential of chemical agents as well as the toxic potential of chemicals on the whole animal. O-Xylene was investigated for its potential mutagenicity by the sperm abnormality assay. Sprague Dawley rats 10-16 weeks old were injected intraperitoneally (ip) with 0.5 and 1.5 ml/kg body weight of o-xylene in corn oil. Five weeks after treatment, animals were sacrificed and sperm examined for morphological abnormalities. Several morphologically abnormal sperm types were observed; among these were those with amorphous heads, and banana-like heads. Animals housed at room temperatures of 20-24°C showed no significant increase in abnormal sperm over the control. Rats housed at temperatures between 24 and 30°C after ip injection with 0.5 ml/kg o-xylene showed a significant increase in abnormal sperm.