High-Fat Diet Consumption Further to Total BodyWeight Can Negatively Affect The Sperm Quality; An ExperimentalTrial

Background: The aim of this s tudy was to compare the impactof long-term adminis tration of a high-fat diet in two differentgroups, one with increased weight about ۸ times to controlgroup and one which increased weight about ۳ times comparedto control group.Materials and Methods: Immature male mice were randomlydivided into ۲ groups as: Control (received normal diet) andexperimental group (EG), which received a high-fat diet. After۲۲ weeks, the experimental group was subdivided into micewith body weights ۳ times higher than control (EG۱) and thosewith body weights ۸ times higher than control mice (EG۲)(n=۶/each group). Following ۲۲ weeks, the body weight, tes tisweight, gonadosomatic index (GSI), and adiposity index (AI)were evaluated and compared between groups. In addition, the sperm count, motility, viability, and chromatin integrity as wellas DNA damage were examined.Results: The body weight and AI were significantly increasedin all high-fat diet-received mice (EG۱ and EG۲) compared tothe control group. However, the GSI was decreased in thesegroups. The tes ticular weight of the EG۲ mice was higher comparedto the control and EG۱ groups. The EG۲ group exhibiteda remarkable increment in the sperm count versus controland EG۱ mice. The percentage of hyperactivated sperms wassignificantly higher in EG۱ when compared to the control andEG۲ groups. In addition, the EG۱ represented higher sperm viabilityversus other groups. The EG۲ mice showed a remarkable(P<۰.۰۵) increment in the percentage of sperms with impairedchromatin condensation. All high-fat diet-received miceshowed severe DNA damage versus control group (P<۰.۰۵).Conclusion: Our findings show that despite the body weight,chronic consumption of a high-fat diet can negatively affectsperm parameters. However, the severity of damages can bealtered depending on body weight ratio after chronic high-fatdiet consumption.