Morphometric and ultrastructural analysis of stage-specific effects of Sertoli and spermatogenic cells seen after short-term testosterone treatment in young adult rat testes

The effects of testosterone treatment on spermatogenesis in the rat have been investigated by morphometric and structural analysis at the ultrastructural level in stages VII-IX. The aim has been to characterize the changes in Sertoli and spermatogenic cells to elucidate the mechanism of testosterone effects on spermatogenesis and to test the possibilities of developing male contraceptives. In stage VII, the morphometric parameters of volume and surface area in Sertoli cells (see abbreviations below): and the morphometric parameter of volume in the spermatogenic cells such as VVPG,T, VVPC,T, VVrPT,T and VVelPT,T decreased. In stage VIII, the respective values of Sertoli cells, VSN, and VSN/VSC decreased while SSJ increased, and the respective morphometric parameters in the spermatogenic cells, VVPG,T, VVPC,T, and VVrPT,T increased. In stage IX, in Sertoli cells VSC, VSN, VSN/VSC, and SSJ remained unchanged. In spermatogenic cells VVPG,T, VVPC,T, and VVrPT,T increased. Further, in all stages, a close apposition of mitochondria and rough endoplasmic reticulum in basolateral cytoplasm of Sertoli cells suggested active protein synthesis. In elongated spermatids in stage IX the microtubular manchette became disorganized. This disorganization and the unexpected shift after testosterone treatment from decrease in several morphometric parameters in stage VIII to increases in stage IX cannot be explained by alterations in testosterone (T), LH, FSH, and their respective receptors. Therefore, still unknown regulatory factors in spermatogenesis are apparently involved in the developmental interactions between Sertoli and spermatogenic cells.