Sulfasalazine induced oxidative stress: a possible mechanism of male infertility.

The mechanism of action of sulfasalazine (SASP) in male infertility is not well elucidated. For it, an oxidative stress-like mechanism inductor of infertility was hypothesized. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats (20/group) were orally administered 0, 300, and 600mg SASP/kg body weight for 14 days. One-half of animals in each group remained an additional period of 14 days without treatment. SASP induced a significant decrease of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione reductase (GR) at the highest dose in both testis and epididymis. GR remained altered in these tissues within the recovery period. However, an increase in SOD was noted in epididymis. An increase in thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) was noted in all SASP-treated groups. In epididymis, catalase (CAT) significantly increased at 600mg/(kgday). These results suggest that SASP induces oxidative stress, which in turn might act as a possible mechanism of male-induced infertility.