Abstract
SUMMARY Immunohistochemical Localization of Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor in Testis of Mice with Experimentally Induced Diabetes In this study, it was aimed to determine the presence of EGFR and changes in the immnunoreactivity of EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor) in the testes of adult male Swiss albino mice experimentally induced diabetes by using immunohistochemical method. The STZ (streptozotocin) was injected at 200mg/kg doses to the mice. Testes were excised after the 1st, 2nd and 3rd weeks following injection. When blood glucose levels of experimental group increased (p<0.001), the body weight of the mice decreased (p<0.001). Although the mean weights of testes decreased in p<0.01 level at the 1st, 2nd and p<0.05 level at the 3rd weeks, important morphological differences in testes were detected only at the 2nd, 3rd weeks. Vacuolization and desquamation of the degenerated germ cells in the seminiferous tubules were observed histologically. Therefore, seminiferous tubules with only a few or no germ cell was observed. It was determined a decrease in seminiferous tubule diameters (p<0.01) and an increase in testicular vessel number (p<0.01). When compared with control group, it was observed that Leydig cells were smaller in experimental group. In the experimental group, although the immunoreactivity of EGFR in the Leydig cells decreased at the 2nd and 3rd weeks (p<0.001), it was not determined any importance for the immunoreactivity of EGFR in the Leydig cells at the 1st week. The result which was come up that the presence of EGFR in the Leydig cells of mice testes and diabetes might alter immunoreactivity of EGFR and that decrease in immunoreactivity of EGFR might be one of the possible reasons of the infertility in diabetic mice Key words : EGFR, diabetes, mouse, testis, immunohistochemistry ifimJfi
