The seahorse (Hippocampus comes L.) extract ameliorates sperm qualities, testosterone level, and serum biochemistry in rats induced by depo medroxyprogesterone acetate

Objective: The percentage of infertility cases in this world is about 50%. Seahorses (Hippocampusspp.) are widely used in traditional medicine. Several studies suggest that seahorses haveethnopharmacological characteristics, such as fertility, antioxidants, and antifatigue. The purposeof this study was to determine whether seahorse extract (SE) (Hippocampus comes L.) has an effecton fertility and serum biochemistry in rats induced by depo medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA).Materials and Methods: All animals were induced with 1.25 mg/kg BW of DMPA. Animals weregrouped into five groups: namely aquadest, 1% CMC, and SE doses of 150, 225, and 300 mg/kgBW. The rats were gavage every morning from week 7 until 18. At the end of our study, semenfrom the vas deferens and blood from the heart were analyzed. We analyzed with a one-way anal-ysis of variance and Bonferroni’s post hoc tests (α 95%).Results: The concentration of spermatozoa had a significant difference in dose of 150 mg/kg BWcompared to other groups (p = 0.04). In contrast, the motility (p = 0.012) and viability of sper-matozoa (p = 0.007) were highly significant differences (p < 0.05 and p < 0.01) at 300 mg/kg BW.Testosterone levels were not significantly (p = 0.162; p > 0.05), but tended to increase at 300 mg/kg BW (11.01%). Nevertheless, serum biochemistry was insignificant (p > 0.05) in all groups.Conclusion: SE (Hippocampus comes L.) ameliorates fertility and serum biochemistry in ratsinduced by DMPA.