Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30774957›Full record

ArticleBasic and clinical andrology2019

Protective role of N-acetylcysteine (NAC) on human sperm exposed to etoposide.

João Baetas, Ana Rabaça, Ana Gonçalves, Alberto Barros, Mário Sousa, Rosália Sá

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Basic and clinical andrology, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
1.1field-weighted citation impact, top 23% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed, 9 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. The Effect of N-Acetyl-Cysteine onInternational journal of fertility & sterility · 2020
    Article
  2. Biallelic mutations inAsian journal of andrology
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

João Baetas1Laboratory of Cell Biology, Department of Microscopy, Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar (ICBAS), University of Porto (UP), Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
Ana Rabaça1Laboratory of Cell Biology, Department of Microscopy, Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar (ICBAS), University of Porto (UP), Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
Ana GonçalvesCentre for Reproductive Genetics A. Barros (CGR), Av. do Bessa, 240, 1° Dto. Frente, 4100-012 Porto, Portugal.
Alberto BarrosCentre for Reproductive Genetics A. Barros (CGR), Av. do Bessa, 240, 1° Dto. Frente, 4100-012 Porto, Portugal.
Mário Sousa1Laboratory of Cell Biology, Department of Microscopy, Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar (ICBAS), University of Porto (UP), Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
Rosália Sá1Laboratory of Cell Biology, Department of Microscopy, Institute of Biomedical Sciences Abel Salazar (ICBAS), University of Porto (UP), Rua Jorge Viterbo Ferreira, 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
Universidade do Porto · PTCentro de Genética Clínica · PT

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundAlthough recent progress in cancer treatment has increased patient survival and improved quality of life, reproductive side effects are still for concern. One way to decrease gonadal impairment is to use cytoprotectors. In testicular cancer, etoposide is generally used in combination with other agents, but there are no in-vitro studies of sperm exposure to etoposide and cytoprotectors, namely N-acetylcysteine (NAC).

methodsTwenty semen samples were individually divided into five groups: control, incubation with NAC alone, incubation with etoposide alone, sequential exposure of NAC followed by etoposide (pre-treatment) and sequential exposure of etoposide followed by NAC (post-treatment). Sperm characteristics, chromatin condensation (aniline blue), DNA fragmentation (TUNEL), oxidative stress (OxyDNA labelling) and glutathione quantification were used to evaluate the capabilities of NAC as a prophylactic (pre-treatment) or ameliorator (post-treatment) agent over the effects caused in sperm during in-vitro exposure to etoposide.

resultsNo deleterious effects were observed on sperm motility or sperm membrane integrity. Results revealed that prophylactic use of NAC (pre-treatment) increased rates of immature sperm chromatin as compared to ameliorator use of NAC (post-treatment), and increased rates of sperm DNA fragmentation in relation to controls. Pre and post-treatment with NAC increased oxidative levels in comparison to controls, but also increased levels of cellular antioxidant glutathione.

conclusionsThe results indicate that NAC has the ability to counteract etoposide-induced toxicity rather than preventing the etoposide cytotoxic effects over sperm DNA, suggesting that the administration of NAC to cells formerly exposed to etoposide is preferable to its prophylactic use. As the results evidenced that NAC seems to be more efficient in attenuating sperm etoposide cytotoxic effects instead of being used as a chemoprophylactic agent, this reinforces the idea that there might be a new NAC mechanism over DNA.

Indexed as

EtoposideN-acetylcysteine (NAC)Sperm DNA fragmentationSperm oxidative stress

Identifiers

PMID30774957
PMCPMC6366041
OpenAlexW2922463883

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.