Chronic cannabidiol exposure promotes functional impairment in sexual behavior and fertility of male mice

Renata K Carvalho; Maingredy R Souza; Monaliza L Santos; Francisco S Guimarães; Roger Luís H Pobbe; Monica L Andersen; Renata Mazaro-Costa

doi:10.1016/j.reprotox.2018.06.013

Chronic cannabidiol exposure promotes functional impairment in sexual behavior and fertility of male mice

Reprod Toxicol. 2018 Oct:81:34-40. doi: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2018.06.013. Epub 2018 Jun 21.

Authors

Renata K Carvalho¹, Maingredy R Souza¹, Monaliza L Santos¹, Francisco S Guimarães², Roger Luís H Pobbe¹, Monica L Andersen³, Renata Mazaro-Costa⁴

Affiliations

¹ Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Physiology and Pharmacology of Reproduction, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, GO, Brazil.
² Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, Universidade de São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
³ Department of Psychobiology, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
⁴ Department of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Physiology and Pharmacology of Reproduction, Universidade Federal de Goiás, Goiânia, GO, Brazil. Electronic address: mazaro.renata@gmail.com.

PMID: 29936126
DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2018.06.013

Abstract

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a potent substance extracted from Cannabis sativa. As it has been suggested that marijuana can affect the reproductive system, we decided to assess the effects of chronic CBD exposure on the male reproductive system in an animal model. 21-day old male Swiss mice received CBD for 34 consecutive days at doses (p.o.) of either 15 or 30 mg/kg, and a control group received sunflower oil. Body weight gain and circulating progesterone concentration did not significantly change in CBD-treated animals. In the sexual behavior analysis, the CBD 15 group presented a delay in performing the first mount and intromission, and a reduced number of mounts and ejaculations. The CBD 30 group showed a 30% reduction in fertility rate and a 23% reduction in the number of litters. Our results indicate that chronic CBD exposure promotes functional impairment of the reproductive system of male Swiss mice.

Keywords: Acrosome reaction; Cannabinoids; Ejaculation; Progesterone.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Cannabidiol / toxicity*
Fertility / drug effects*
Male
Mice
Progesterone / blood
Sexual Behavior / drug effects*

Substances

Cannabidiol
Progesterone