Long-term copper exposure promotes apoptosis and autophagy by inducing oxidative stress in pig testis

Copper (Cu) is a heavy metal which is being used widely in the industry and agriculture. However, the overuse of Cu makes it a common environmental pollutant. In order to investigate the testicular toxicity of Cu, the pigs were divided into three groups and were given Cu at 10 (control), 125, and 250 mg/kg body weight, respectively. The feeding period was 80 days. Serum hormone results showed that Cu exposure decreased the concentrations of follicular stimulating hormone (FSH) and luteinizing hormone (LH) and increased the concentration of thyroxine (T4). Meanwhile, Cu exposure upregulated the expression of Cu transporter mRNA (Slc31a1, ATP7A, and ATP7B) in the testis, leading to increase in testicular Cu and led to spermatogenesis disorder. The Cu exposure led to an increased expression of antioxidant-related mRNA (Gpx4, TRX, HO-1, SOD1, SOD2, SOD3, CAT), along with increase in the MDA concentration in the testis. In LG group, the ROS in the testis was significantly increased. Furthermore, the apoptotic-related mRNA (Caspase3, Caspase8, Caspase9, Bax, Cytc, Bak1, APAF1, p53) and protein (Active Caspase3) and the autophagy-related mRNA (Beclin1, ATG5, LC3, and LC3B) expression increased after Cu exposure. The mitochondrial membrane potential in the testicular tissue decreased, while the number of apoptotic cells increased, as a result of oxidative stress. Overall, our study indicated that the Cu exposure promotes testicular apoptosis and autophagy by mediating oxidative stress, which is considered as the key mechanism causing testicular degeneration as well as dysfunction.