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Testicular function of rats following exposure to microwave radiation
Author(s) -
Lebovitz Rober T. M.,
Johnson L.
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
bioelectromagnetics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.435
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1521-186X
pISSN - 0197-8462
DOI - 10.1002/bem.2250040202
Subject(s) - sperm , irradiation , spermatogenesis , andrology , epididymis , pulse (music) , dose rate , microwave irradiation , biology , microwave , nuclear medicine , medicine , chemistry , radiochemistry , physics , optics , quantum mechanics , detector , nuclear physics
Abstract Male Sprague‐Dawley rats were exposed for 6 h per day for nine days to pulse‐modulated microwave radiation (1.3 GHz, at 1‐μs pulse width, 600 pulses per second). Exposures were carried out in cylindrical waveguide sections at a mean dose rate of 6.3 mW/g; sham controls were treated similarly and received no irradiation. At time periods corresponding to 0.5, 1.0, 2.0, and 4.0 cycles of the seminiferous epithelium, groups of four shamirradiated and four irradiated rats were killed and the testes removed for analysis. Net mass of the testes, epididymides, and seminal vesicles; daily sperm production (DSP) per testis and per gram of testis; sperm morphology; and the number of epididymal sperm were determined. There were no statistically significant differences between the shamirradiated and irradiated groups with respect to any measured variable. In a group of seven surrogate animals of similar body mass, the dose rate of 6.3 mW/g caused a net change in body temperature (via rectal probe) of 1.5 °C.