Effects of Annickia Chlorantha Bark Ethanolic Extract on Testicular Function Indices and the HPLC Fingerprint on Spermatogenic Type 1 & 2 Hexokinase Modulation

Abstract

Decline in spermatogenesis and steroidogenesis in the testis will ultimately lead to male infertility. This present study evaluated the effect of the Annickia chlorantha ethanolic bark extract on testicular function indices. Twenty (20) Wistar rats were randomly distributed into 4 treatment groups: A-D. The control group (A) was administered distilled water and groups B-D were orally administered 100, 200, and 300 mg/kg body weight of extract respectively. The rats were euthanized 24 hrs after the last day of the 14-day experiment and testis was harvested for biochemical and histopathological study. There was a significant increase (p<0.05) in the ALP, ACP, and SOD activity in the treated groups compared to the control. Similarly, there was a significant increase (p<0.05) in MDA, sialic acid, and glycogen concentration in all the treated groups compared to the control. The tissue histopathology showed normal histomorphology of spermatogonia in the treated groups compared to the control. Quercetin, resorcinol and vanillin flavonoids are present in the extract. The binding energy of the ligands to the hk1 structure range is −8.2 to −4.8 kcal/mol, while with hk2, the range is −8.5 to −5.2 kcal/mol. Quercetin has higher binding affinity on both protein structures compared to metaformin and glucose-6 phosphate. The extract improved some testicular function indices due to high flavonoid content, particularly quercetin; nonetheless, there is a risk of toxicological consequences due to high MDA levels and inhibition of hexokinase activity. As a result, when used for testicular function augmentation, caution should be exercised, and additional study is required to understand the mechanism of testicular function increase and the associated toxicological implications.