Morphological and biochemical changes following acute unilateral testicular torsion in prepubertal rats.

Purpose: The role played by reactive oxygen species in the effects of testicular torsion and torsion/detorsion on ipsilateral and contralateral testis was investigated.

Materials And Methods: Prepubertal rats were submitted to unilateral testicular torsion alone or followed by detorsion for up to 1 week. Morphology and biochemical parameters (thiobarbituric reactive substances, superoxide dismutase-like and catalase-like activities) were evaluated.

Results: Torsion (1 or 2 h) alone induced time-dependent morphological damages that worsened progressively after detorsion in ipsilateral testis but had no effect on contralateral testis. The levels of antioxidants against the superoxide anion and hydrogen peroxide decreased in ipsilateral but not in contralateral testis. However, the level of thiobarbituric reactive substances (an indicator of lipid perioxidation) decreased after testicular torsion or torsion/detorsion in both testes.

Conclusion: These data emphasize that oxidative stress may play a role in testicular damage caused by torsion/detorsion and that biochemical indicators of oxidative stress are more sensitive than histological techniques in detecting modifications in the contralateral testis.