Toxicology studies of a chemical mixture of 25 groundwater contaminants. III. Male reproduction study in B6C3F1 mice.

A mixture of chemicals has been developed that models contaminated groundwater around hazardous waste sites. We investigated the effects of this mixture on spermatogenesis in B6C3F1 mice. The animals consumed three different concentrations of this mixture for 90 days, after which time they were euthanatized. Although there was a concentration-related decrease in the amount of fluid consumed at the higher two concentrations, there were no differences in body weight among the groups. Similarly, there was no effect of mixture consumption upon the histology of liver, kidney, testis, epididymis, or seminal vesicles or upon the absolute organ weights of these organs. Kidney weight relative to body weight was increased in the high dose group. Epididymal sperm number and testicular spermatid count were not affected by treatment. These studies show that, at exposure levels that decrease fluid intake and increase adjusted kidney weight, there were no effects of this mixture on gametogenesis in male mice.