Pharmacological action of quercetin against testicular dysfunction: A mini review

The testis is an immune-privileged organ susceptible to oxidative stress and inflammation, two major factors implicated in male infertility. A reduction in the concentration and activities of testicular function biomarkers has been shown to correlate with impaired hypothalamic-pituitary-testicular axis and oxidative stress. However, the use of natural products to ameliorate these oxidative stress-induced changes may be essential to improving male reproductive function. Quercetin possesses several pharma-cological activities that may help to combat cellular reproduction-related assaults, such as altered sperm function and reproductive hormone dysfunction, and dysregulated testicular apoptosis, oxidative stress, and inflammation. Studies have shown that quercetin ameliorates testicular toxicity, largely by inhibiting the generation of reactive oxygen species, with the aid of the two antioxidant pharmacophores present in its ring structure. The radical-scavenging property of quercetin may alter signal transduction of oxidative stress-induced apoptosis, prevent inflammation, and increase sperm quality in relation to the hormonal concentration. In this review, the therapeutic potential of quercetin in mediating male reproductive health is discussed. Please cite this article as: Rotimi DE, Olaolu TD, Adeyemi OS. Pharmacological action of quercetin against testicular dysfunction: A mini review. J Integr Med. 2022; 20(5): 396-401.(c) 2022 Shanghai Yueyang Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

The testis is susceptible to oxidative stress and inflammation, which are major factors in male infertility. Quercetin, with its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties, has been shown to improve male reproductive function by ameliorating altered sperm function, reproductive hormone dysfunction, dysregulated testicular apoptosis, oxidative stress, and inflammation.