الفهرس 
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Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the effect of ginger and L-carnitine on reproductive performance in male rats. To achieve this goal, we conducted two experiments:
A. The first experiment examined the effect of ginger, L-carnitine and a combination of both ginger and L-carnitine on testes weight, gonadosomatic index, parameters of semen evaluation (count, motility and viability of sperm), testicular antioxidant system (SOD, GSH, catalase and TAC), level of FSH, LH, testosterone hormone and on histological structure of the testes. This experiment was carried for one month on forty adult male rats which are divided into four groups (ten rats each) as following:
1. Control group: rats received physiological saline solution using stomach tube.
2. Ginger-treated group: rats received daily dose of 100 mg/kg B. W of ginger by stomach tube.
3. L-carnitine-treated group: rats received daily dose of 150 mg/kg B. W of L-carnitine by stomach tube.
4. Group treated with both ginger and L-carnitine (combination group): rats received the previously mentioned doses of ginger and L-carnitine daily by stomach tube.
The results obtained from this experiment showed that:
1. The average testes weight decreased in all experimental groups, ginger-treated group, L-carnitine-treated group and combination respectively. There was highly significant increase in gonadosomatic index in groups treated with combination of ginger + L-carnitine, ginger and L-carnitine (without significant difference between these groups) as compared with control group.
2. Oral administration of all treatments increased sperm count in the following order: combination group, ginger-treated group and L-carnitine-treated group. There was highly significant increase in both sperm motility and viability in all treated group (without difference between these groups) as compared with control group.
3. TAC increased after administration of L-carnitine, combination of ginger + L-carnitine and ginger respectively. Catalase enzyme increased after administration of the previous treatments in the following order, L-carnitine, ginger and combination of ginger + L-carnitine. There was a significant increase in reduced glutathione in L-carnitine-treated group followed by ginger-treated group and combination group. Administration of ginger, L-carnitine and combination of ginger + L-carnitine respectively for one month caused highly significant increase in level of superoxide dismutase in these groups as compared with control group.
4. Level of FSH and testosterone hormones increased in all treated groups in the following order, ginger-treated group, combination group and L-carnitine-treated group; while LH levels increased in ginger-treated group and decreased in L-carnitine-treated group and combination group respectively as compared with control group.
B. The second experiment was carried out on fifty early mature male rats from which forty five rats administrated camphor as a fertility suppressing substance for 20 days while the remaining five rats received olive oil for the same treatment period (20 days) after which rats that received olive oil and five rats from camphor-treated group were sacrificed to detect the effect of camphor on histological structure of testes. After that, the remaining forty rats that treated with camphor were further divided into the following groups:
1. Control group (ten rats) (the same group that was used in the first experiment): rats received physiological saline solution using stomach tube.
2. Ginger-treated group (ten rats): rats received daily dose of 100 mg/kg B. W of ginger by stomach tube (following camphor treatment).
3. L-carnitine-treated group (ten rats): rats received daily dose of 150 mg/kg B. W of L-carnitine by stomach tube (after camphor treatment).
4. Group treated with both ginger and L-carnitine (combination group) (ten rats): rats received the previously mentioned doses of ginger and L-carnitine daily by stomach tube (following camphor treatment).
5. camphor-treated group (self-recovery) (ten rats): rats in this group did not receive any further treatment after camphor treatment to detect the possibility of self-recovery from the adverse effect of camphor in this group.
After the end of the treatment period, all rats were sacrificed with determination of testes weight, gonadosomatic index, evaluation of semen, testicular antioxidant system, male sex hormones and examination of the histological structure of the testes.
The results obtained from this experiment showed that:
1. The average testes weight decreased significantly in combination group and camphor-treated group (without significant difference between the two groups); while there was no significant difference in average testes weight in ginger-treated group and L-carnitine-treated group. On the other hand, gonadosomatic index increased in ginger-treated group, L-carnitine-treated group and camphor-treated group (without difference between the last two groups) respectively and decreased in combination group as compared with control group.
2. The present study showed that, sperm count increased in groups treated with ginger, L-carnitine and combination of ginger + L-carnitine respectively and decreased in camphor-treated group. On the other hand, sperm motility and viability increased in groups treated with L-carnitine and ginger respectively and decreased in camphor-treated group and combination group respectively as compared with control group.
3. Oral administration of all treatments (camphor, ginger, L-carnitine and combination of ginger + L-carnitine) caused highly significant increase in TAC (without significant difference between these groups). Also, there was highly significant increase in catalase level in L-carnitine-treated group and ginger-treated group (without significant difference between the two groups) and highly significant decrease in catalase level in combination group without significant difference in catalase level in camphor-treated group. Reduced glutathione levels increased in groups treated with combination of ginger + L-carnitine, L-carnitine and ginger respectively without effect on reduced glutathione in camphor- treated group. In addition, level of superoxide dismutase increased in all treated groups, ginger-treated group, camphor-treated group, L-carnitine-treated group and combination group respectively as compared with control group.
4. Level of FSH hormone increased in ginger-treated group, camphor-treated group and L-carnitine-treated group respectively and decreased in combination group. On the other hand, LH level increased in combination group, and decreased in ginger-treated group, camphor-treated group respectively without effect on LH level in L-carnitine-treated group. Testosterone hormone level increased in all treated groups in the following order, ginger-treated group, combination group, L-carnitine-treated group and camphor-treated group as compared with control group.