By Stephen Daniells
30/01/2008- Regular consumption of pomegranate juice may
enhance the quality and mobility of sperm, suggests a new study with male rats.
The link between the antioxidant-rich juice and male
fertility could see pomegranate seen as much more than a heart healthy food, if
the new results published in Clinical Nutrition can be translated to humans.
"The results of this study demonstrated, for the first
time, that daily consumption of PJ for seven weeks caused increased
spermatogenic cell density, epididymal sperm concentration, sperm motility and
decreased abnormal sperm rate related with decreased lipid peroxidation in male
rats," wrote lead Gaffari Turk from Firat University in Turkey.
The health-benefits of pomegranate have focussed almost
exclusively on the pulp and juice of the fruit, most notably in fruit form
although extracts are also gaining increasing attention. The antioxidant-rich
fruit have been linked to improved heart health, and claims that it may offer
protection against prostate cancer, Alzheimer's, and may slow cartilage loss in
arthritis.
It is these antioxidants, and particularly compounds like
punicalagin, which accounts for about half of the fruit's antioxidant ability,
that are reportedly behind the proposed health benefits.
The new study suggests the health benefits of the fruit may
also extend to improving fertility, and comes only months after a pilot study
reported that pomegranate juice may help manage erectile dysfunction
(International Journal of Impotence Research, doi: 10.1038/sj.ijir.3901570).
Turk and co-workers divided 28 male Wistar rats into four
groups, and assigned them to drink one millilitre of distilled water (control
group), 0.75 mL water plus 0.25 mL pomegranate juice (PJ), 0.50 mL water plus
0.50 mL PJ, or one mL PJ daily for seven weeks.
At the end of the experiment, the researchers report that
levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), a reactive carbonyl compound and a major end
product of lipid oxidation, significantly decreased as a result of PJ
consumption, with the a 48.5 and 63.5 per cent decrease in the serum and sperm
of the animals drinking the concentrated juice, respectively, compared to
controls.
"Spermatozoa are especially susceptible to peroxidative
damage because of the high concentration of polyunsaturated fatty acids which
are involved in regulation of sperm maturation, [and] spermatogenesis,"
explained the researchers.
Levels of antioxidant enzyme activities increased as a
result of PJ, report Turk and co-workers, with sperms activities of glutathione
(GSH), glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) and catalase (CAT) increasing by 4.5,
12.5 and 52.9 per cent, respectively.
Moreover, the researchers report: "In the present study
it was observed that epididymal sperm concentration and sperm motility of rats
that received different doses of PJ were significantly higher than those of the
control."
"Additionally, only a high dose of PJ significantly
decreased total abnormality of sperms when compared to the control," they
added.
Significant further research is necessary to investigate if
such observations would be reproducible in humans, and the necessary doses
required to illicit such improvements. Mechanistic studies would also help
identify the active ingredients in the pomegranate and their direct mode of
action.
Consumption of pomegranate juice has been on the rise,
particularly in the UK
where sales have rocketed in the last year thanks to media coverage of the
antioxidant-rich fruit that has commonly been linked to improved heart health,
as well as claims that pomegranate could protect against prostate cancer and
slows cartilage loss in arthritis.
Source: Clinical
Nutrition (Elsevier)
Published online ahead of print, doi:10.1016/j.clnu.2007.12.006
"Effects of pomegranate juice consumption on sperm
quality, spermatogenic cell density, antioxidant activity and testosterone
level in male rats"
Authors: G. Turk, M. Sonmez, M. Aydin, A. Yuce, S. Gur, M.
Yuksel, E.H. Aksu, H. Aksoy
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