Influence of virgin coconut oil (VCNO) on oxidative stress, serum testosterone and gonadotropic hormones (FSH, LH) in chronic ethanol ingestion

Abstract

The present study explored the effect of virgin coconut oil on oxidative stress, testosterone and gonadotropic hormones in alcohol-induced testicular injury. Twenty-five male rats were randomly assigned to one of five groups (n=5). The oil was processed from the mature endosperm of coconut and administered at 6.7 ml/kg body weight, while alcohol was given orally at 7 ml/kg body weight. After sacrifice, testicular malondialdehyde and serum hormone levels were determined. Testicular malondialdehyde levels increased significantly in animals treated with alcohol alone (p < 0.001), and animals treated with alcohol following virgin coconut oil treatment (p < 0.05) while the other groups showed a significant decrease (p < 0.05) when compared with the control. However, when compared with the group treated with alcohol alone, all the other groups showed a significant decrease (p < 0.05) in testicular malondialdehyde level. Serum testosterone levels increased significantly (p < 0.05) in rats treated with virgin coconut oil when compared with the alcohol-only treated group, while serum FSH and LH levels were not significantly different from the control values in all the treatment groups. Virgin coconut oil effectively lowered alcohol-induced oxidative stress by reducing testicular malondialdehyde levels and ameliorated the deleterious effect of alcohol on serum testosterone level, but showed no effect on serum FSH and LH levels.