Caulerpa lentillifera polysaccharides-rich extract reduces oxidative stress and proinflammatory cytokines levels associated with male reproductive functions in diabetic mice

Abstract

Diabetes mellitus is a chronic metabolic disease that is positively correlated with reproductive dysfunction. Caulerpa lentillifera is an edible green alga with antioxidant and anti-diabetic properties. This study aims to evaluate the ameliorative effects of a polysaccharides-rich extract from C. lentillifera on the reproductive dysfunctions of diabetic male BALB/c mice induced by a high-fat diet (HFD) supplemented with intraperitoneal injections of streptozotocin (STZ). C. lentillifera was obtained from hot water and converted into a powder form (C. lentillifera extract (CLE)) by freeze drying. Mice were fed an HFD for 4 weeks before supplementing with STZ (30 mg/kg). The diabetic mice were divided into five groups, including a control group, a diabetic (DM) group, a DM with administration of a low-dose CLE treatment (DM+CLE1, 600 mg/kg), a DM with administration of a high-dose of CLE (DM+CLE2, 1000 mg/kg) and a DM with metformin treatment as a positive control (DM+Met, 200 mg/kg) for 6 weeks. The results showed that the CLE administration improved hyperglycemia and insulin resistance. Proinflammatory cytokines such as interleukin-1β and tumor necrosis factor-α were found to decrease in the CLE-treated groups. Additionally, CLE was shown to improve sperm motility and testis morphology. Based on the results, it was confirmed that the polysaccharides-rich extract from C. lentillifera extract was able to prevent diabetes-induced male reproductive dysfunction.