Effect of Dietary Concentration of Aflatoxin B₁ and Vitamin-C on Meiotic Chromosomes, Sperm Head Morphology and Sperm Count in Mice, Mus musculus

抄録

Increases in frequencies of structural as well as division-disruptive changes in meiotic chromosomes and morphological abnormalities in sperm head, along with decrease in sperm count were found to be produced by the chronic administration (12 weeks, two spermatogenic cycles) of dietary concentration (0.5μg, 50±10 ppb) of crude AFB₁in laboratory inbred stock of male, Mus musculus mice. These abnormalities were significantly minimised by vitamin-C, (VC) when the latter was administered in human therapeutic dose (10mg/K. b.wt./day). The concurrent and post-treatments of the vitamin were more effective in minimising the genotoxicity of aflatoxin; pre-administration of the vitamin was least effective. Scavenger role of VC in removal of biotransformed premutagenic molecules and radicals produced by AFB₁has been discussed as a probable mechanism for VC-mediated minimisation of aflatoxingenotoxicity.