The recovery of the testis over 8 weeks after short-term dosing with ethylene glycol monomethyl ether: histology, cell-specific enzymes, and rete testis fluid protein.

Ethylene glycol monomethyl ether (EGME) has been found to affect meiotic spermatocytes, spermatids, other stages of spermatocytes, and spermatogonia, depending on the dose used. These studies, which examine testicular recovery from EGME treatment, analyzed tissues from rats treated for 5 days with 0, 50, 100, or 200 mg EGME/kg/day and sacrificed at eight subsequent weekly intervals; some epididymal sperm parameters of these animals have been described. Histologically, the testes of the low-dose group showed very mild changes, while the 100- and 200-mg/kg groups showed widespread damage and cell death which recovered somewhat during the course of the study. There was no treatment-related effect on seminal vesicle or prostate weights. Rete testis fluid protein levels were changed only in the high-dose group, when protein levels rose to a maximum of sixfold the control values at Week 4; by Week 6, there was no difference between groups. Changes in cell-specific enzyme activities were dose dependent and generally mirrored changes in the number of germ cells in the testis.