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Updated: May 23, 2026

Long-term Behavioral and Reproductive Consequences of Embryonic Exposure to Low-dose Toxicants
Published on: March 6, 2018
Prenatal di-n-butyl phthalate exposure alters reproductive functions at adulthood in male rats
Nelli Giribabu1, Sri Bhashyam Sainath, Pamanji Sreenivasula Reddy
1Department of Zoology, Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati 517502, Andhra Pradesh, India, >
Abstract:
This study was aimed to investigate the reproductive health in adult male rats exposed to di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP) during embryonic development. Pregnant rats were injected with DBP and F1 male rats were weaned and on postnatal day 100, used for mating with normal cycling females to assess reproductive performance. After completion of cohabitation period, rats were analyzed for other reproductive end points. Transplacental exposure to DBP significantly decreased fertility in adult male rats. Prenatal exposure to DBP significantly decreased sperm density, number of motile sperms, viable sperms, and hypoosmotic swelling tail coiled sperms with an increase in morphological abnormalities in sperms. Testicular steroidogenic enzyme activity levels and serum testosterone levels were significantly decreased in rats exposed to DBP during embryonic development. In conclusion, transplacental exposure to DBP impairs male reproductive performance by decreasing steroidogenesis and spermatogenesis.
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