Effects of Ciprofloxacin on rat Sertoli cells

Ciprofloxacin is a synthetic antibacterial agent from the fluoroquinolones family with a very broad spectrum against microbial pathogens, especially Gram-negative infectious diseases, which has been approved in more than 100 countries world-wide. This study was planed to identify the histopathological effects of ciprofloxacin on rat Sertoli cells. Twenty male Wistar rats were selected and randomly divided into two groups control (n=10) and experimental (n=10). The experimental group received 12.5 mg/kg oral ciprofloxacin daily for sixty days. On sixtieth day the testis tissues in both groups were removed and weighted, then prepared for light microscopy and electron microscopy studies. There was a marked decrease in testicular weight, marked accumulation and atrophy of seminiferous tubules of Sertoli cells in experimental group as compared with control group (P<0.05). Ciprofloxacin can induce marked histological alteration in testicular tissue of rat, therefore these histological effects and possibility of producing infertility should be investigated in human subjects.