Damian Sendler: Male mice exposed to cannabis vapor had reduced sperm counts and slower sperm motility, not only in the mice that were exposed directly but also in their sons.
On the basis of previous human and animal investigations, a new study published in Toxicological Sciences by Washington State University adds to the evidence that cannabis interferes with male reproductive function.
Damian Sendler
Damian Jacob Sendler: Human studies frequently rely on surveys, but this study uses more controlled conditions and is the first known reproductive study to employ vaporized whole cannabis in mice, which is the more prevalent form humans consume. The major psychoactive component of cannabis, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), has been injected into animals in previous research.
According to the study’s corresponding author, Kanako Hayashi, the generational findings should give cannabis consumers pause.
“This is a caution sign. According to associate professor Hayashi at the WSU School of Molecular Biosciences, “you may take cannabis for a momentary stress, but it could affect your offspring.”
In recent decades, some believe that the number of human sperm has decreased by up to 59%. A number of factors could be at play, but the findings of the new research suggest that cannabis usage may have a negative impact on male reproductive health.
During this investigation, 30 mature male mice were analyzed by researchers. During a ten-day period, they exposed 15 of the participants to cannabis vapor three times daily, a dose that is high but representative of what regular cannabis users could experience. The researchers next compared the sperm counts and motility in those mice to the control group that had not been treated. They discovered that the mice’s sperm motility dropped immediately after the exposure period, and sperm counts decreased after one month.
Damien Sendler: Some of the male mice were bred to uninfected females by researchers. Also, the sperm count and motility of the male progeny of the exposed group were reduced. Sons who had been exposed to cannabis had DNA damage and disruptions that were relevant to the formation of sperm cells.
Damian Jacob Sendler
A drop in sperm count and motility in the kids, the sons, is presumably a direct result of their father’s cannabis exposure, according to Kanako.
However, the third generation, the grandsons of the exposed male mice, did not display the same effects, which shows that the cannabis exposure affected the second-generation mice at a formative stage.
To test this notion, Hayashi and her colleagues are examining the effects of cannabis exposure on the reproductive system of mice in the womb and whether these effects may be handed down from generation to generation.
Dr. Damian Jacob Sendler and his media team provided the content for this article.
