The coconut water is the most nutritious wholesome beverage in all coconut producing countries. Folk medicine describes the use of coconut water to reduce toxic effects of nicotine and alcohol in reproductive function in men, but its direct evidence is lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of tender and mature coconut water consumption on nicotine induced changes in sperm quality, spermatogenic cell density, activity of testicular marker enzymes for spermatogenesis and testosterone level of male healthy rats. Male Sprague Dawley rats were treated with tender and mature coconut water intragastrically and nicotine subcutaneously for 15 days. The findings indicated that the coconut water supplementation improves epididymal spermatogenic cell density (p ≤ 0.05), sperm motility and morphology which were altered by nicotine. The activity of acid phosphatase and alkaline phosphatase was increased (p ≤ 0.05), which indicates that treatment with coconut water provides significant protection of germinal epithelium from nicotine toxicity. Coconut water also shows a significant increase (p ≤ 0.05) in testosterone levels in nicotine treated rats. Coconut water ameliorates the reproductive toxicity caused by nicotine due to presence on nutrients L-arginine, ascorbic acid, minerals like calcium and magnesium.
Jana, K., Samanta, P.K. and De, D.K. (2010) Nicotine Diminishes Testicular Gametogenesis, Steroidogenesis, and Steroidogenic Acute Regulatory Protein Expression in Adult Albino Rats: Possible Influence on Pituitary Gonadotropins and Alteration of Testicular Antioxidant Status. Toxicological Sciences, 116, 647-659.
Aydos, K., Guven, M.C., Can, B. and Ergun, A. (2001) Nicotine Toxicity to the Ultrastructure of the Testis in Rats. BJU International, 88, 622-626.
Segarra, A.C. and Strand, F.L. (1989) Perinatal Administration of Nicotine Alters Subsequent Sexual Behavior and Testosterone Levels of Male Rats. Brain Research, 480, 151-159.
Yamamoto, Y., Isoyama, E., Sofikitis, N. and Miyagawa, I. (1998) Effects of Smoking on Testicular Function and Fertilizing Potential in Rats. Urological Research, 26, 45-48.
Lewin, A., Gonen, O., Orvieto, R. and Schenker, J.G. (1991) Effect of Smoking on Concentration, Motility and Zona-Free Hamster Test on Human Sperm. Archives of Andrology, 27, 51-54.
Reddy, A., Sood, A., Rust, P.F., Busby, J.E., Varn, E., Mathur, R.S. and Mathur, S. (1995) The Effect of Nicotine on in Vitro Sperm Motion Characteristics. Journal of Assisted Reproduction and Genetics, 12, 217-223.
Sinclair, S. (2000) Male Infertility: Nutritional and Environmental Considerations. Alternative Medicine Review, 5, 28-38.
Sandhya, V.G. and Rajamohan, T. (2006) Beneficial Effects of Coconut Water Feeding on Lipid Metabolism in Cholesterol-Fed Rats. Journal of Medicinal Food, 9, 400-407.
Sandhya, V.G. and Rajamohan, T. (2008) Comparative Evaluation of the Hypolipidemic Effects of Coconut Water and Lovastatin in Rats Fed Fat-Cholesterol Enriched Diet. Food and Chemical Toxicology, 46, 3586-3592.
Anurag, P. and Rajamohan, T. (2003) Beneficial Effects of Tender Coconut Water against Isoproterenol Induced Toxicity on Heart Mitochondrial Activities in Rats. Indian Journal of Biochemistry & Biophysics, 40, 278-280.
Loki, A.L. and Rajamohan, T. (2003) Hepatoprotective and Antioxidant Effect of Tender Coconut Water on Carbon Tetrachloride Induced Liver Injury in Rats. Indian Journal of Biochemistry & Biophysics, 40, 354-357.
Bhagya, D., Prema, L. and Rajamohan, T. (2012) Therapeutic Effects of Tender Coconut Water on Oxidative Stress in Fructose Fed Insulin Resistant Hypertensive Rats. Asian Pacific Journal of Tropical Medicine, 5, 270-276.
Vanha-Perttula, T. and Nikkanen, V. (1973) Acid Phosphatases of the Rat Testis in Experimental Conditions. Acta Endocrinologica (Copenh), 72, 376-390.
Institute of Laboratory Animal Resources, Commission on Life Sciences, National Research Council (1996) Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. National Academy Press, Washington DC.
World Health Organization (1999) Laboratory Manual for the Examination of Human Semen and Sperm Cervical Mucus Interaction. Cambridge University Press, New York.
Malamy, M. and Horecker, B.L. (1966) Alkaline Phosphatase (Crystalline). In: Willis, A.W., Ed., Methods in Enzymology, Volume 9, Academic Press, Massachusetts, 639-642.
Carr, J.J. and Drekter, I.J. (1956) Simplified Rapid Technic for the Extraction and Determination of Serum Cholesterol without Saponification. Clinical Chemistry, 2, 353-368.
Scibona, M., Meschini, P., Capparelli, S., Pecori, C., Rossi, P. and Fabris, G.F.M. (1994) [L-Arginine and Male Infertility]. Minerva Urologica e Nefrologica, 46, 251-253.
Dawson, E.B., Harris, W.A., Teter, M.C. and Powell, L.C. (1992) Effect of Ascorbic Acid Supplementation on the Sperm Quality of Smokers. Fertility and Sterility, 58, 1034-1039.
Jana, K., Jana, S. and Samanta, P.K. (2006) Effects of Chronic Exposure to Sodium Arsenite on Hypothalamo-Pituitary-Testicular Activities in Adult Rats: Possible an Estrogenic Mode of Action. Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology, 4, 9.
Schachter, A., Goldman, J.A. and Zukerman, Z. (1973) Treatment of Oligospermia with the Amino Acid Arginine. The Journal of Urology, 110, 311-313.
Wu, G., Bazer, F.W., Davis, T.A., Kim, S.W., Li, P., Rhoads, J.M., Satterfield, M.C., Smith, S.B., Spencer, T.E. and Yin, Y. (2009) Arginine Metabolism and Nutrition in Growth, Health and Disease. Amino Acids, 37, 153-168.
Balercia, G., Moretti, S., Vignini, A., Magagnini, M., Mantero, F., Boscaro, M., Ricciardo-Lamonica, G. and Mazzanti, L. (2004) Role of Nitric Oxide Concentrations on Human Sperm Motility. Journal of Andrology, 25, 245-249.
Sepaniak, S., Forges, T., Gerard, H., Foliguet, B., Bene, M.C. and Monnier-Barbarino, P. (2006) The Influence of Cigarette Smoking on Human Sperm Quality and DNA Fragmentation. Toxicology, 223, 54-60.
Srivastava, S., Desai, P., Coutinho, E. and Govil, G. (2000) Protective Effect of L-Arginine against Lipid Peroxidation in Goat Epididymal Spermatozoa. Physiological Chemistry and Physics and Medical NMR, 32, 127-135.
Mantena, S.K., Jagadish, Badduri, S.R., Siripurapu, K.B. and Unnikrishnan, M.K. (2003) In Vitro Evaluation of Antioxidant Properties of Cocos nucifera Linn. Water. Nahrung, 47, 126-131.
Akmal, M., Qadri, J.Q., Al-Waili, N.S., Thangal, S., Haq, A. and Saloom, K.Y. (2006) Improvement in Human Semen Quality after Oral Supplementation of Vitamin C. Journal of Medicinal Food, 9, 440-442.
Yousef, M.I. (2005) Protective Role of Ascorbic Acid to Enhance Reproductive Performance of Male Rabbits Treated with Stannous Chloride. Toxicology, 207, 81-89.
Fraga, C.G., Motchnik, P.A., Shigenaga, M.K., Helbock, H.J., Jacob R.A. and Ames, B.N. (1991) Ascorbic acid Protects against Endogenous Oxidative DNA Damage in Human Sperm. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 88, 11003-11006.
Seema, P., Swathy, S.S. and Indira, M. (2007) Protective Effect of Selenium on Nicotine-Induced Testicular Toxicity in Rats. Biological Trace Element Research, 120, 212-218.
Sharpe, R.M., Maddocks, S., Millar, M., Kerr, J.B., Saunders, P.T. and McKinnell, C. (1992) Testosterone and Spermatogenesis. Identification of Stage-Specific, Androgen-Regulated Proteins Secreted by Adult Rat Seminiferous Tubules. Journal of Andrology, 13, 172-184.
Cremades, A., Ruzafa, C., Monserrat, F., López-Contreras, A.J. and Peñafiel, R. (2004) Influence of Dietary Arginine on the Anabolic Effects of Androgens. Journal of Endocrinology, 183, 343-351.
Karanth, S., Yu, W.H., Walczewska, A., Mastronardi, C.A. and McCann, S.M. (2001) Ascorbic Acid Stimulates Gonadotropin Release by Autocrine Action by Means of NO. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 98, 11783-11788.
Wong, W.Y., Flik, G., Groenen, P.M., Swinkels, D.W., Thomas, C.M., Copius-Peereboom, J.H., Merkus, H.M. and Steegers-Theunissen, R.P. (2001) The Impact of Calcium, Magnesium, Zinc, and Copper in Blood and Seminal Plasma on Semen Parameters in Men. Reproductive Toxicology, 15, 131-136.
Chandra, A.K., Sengupta, P., Goswami, H. and Sarkar, M. (2013) Effects of Dietary Magnesium on Testicular Histology, Steroidogenesis, Spermatogenesis and Oxidative Stress Markers in Adult Rats. Indian Journal of Experimental Biology, 51, 37-47.
Toniolli, R., Bussiere, J., Courot, M., Magistrini, M. and Combarnous, Y. (1996) Effect of Indole-3-Acetic Acid (Plant Auxin) on the Preservation at 15 Degrees C of Boar Semen for Artificial Insemination. Reproduction Nutrition Development, 36, 503-511.