Pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of testicular degeneration in the bull
Keywords:
Testicular degeneration, bull, infertility, subfertility, spermatogenesis, spermiogram
Abstract
Testicular degeneration in the bull is described as diffuse disintegration of seminiferous tubule structure and function causing a profound reduction in sperm concentration, scrotal circumference, and an increase in sperm morphologic abnormalities resulting in subfertility or permanent infertility. Degenerative changes within the seminiferous epithelium occur most commonly after an insult to spermatogenesis or may be idiopathic. Common insults include trauma, stress (environmental, heat, nutritional), or toxins. Idiopathic is most often associated with age-related changes. Clinical signs of testicular degeneration are discussed along with approaches to treatment and potential prognoses as related to treatment and management practices that can be employed by the general practitioner and specialist alike. This review will also encompass a discussion on the pathophysiology of this disease so that the practitioner has a detailed understanding of the disease, which improves their ability to employ evidence-based medicine and sound clinical reasoning.
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References
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2. Gledhill B: Inherited disorders causing infertility in the bull. Amer Vet Med Assoc J 197;162: 979–982.
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7. Welsh T, McCraw R, Johnson B: Influence of corticosteroids on testosterone production in the bull. Biol Reprod 1979;21:755–763. doi: 10.1095/biolreprod21.3.755
8. Welsh T, Randel R, Johnson B: Temporal relationships among peripheral blood concentrations of corticosteroids, luteinizing hormone and testosterone in bulls. Theriogenology 1979;12:169–179. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(79)90082-7
9. Welsh T, Johnson BH: Stress-induced alterations in secretion of corticosteroids, progesterone, luteinizing hormone, and testosterone in bulls. Endocrinology 1981;109:185–190. doi: 10.1210/endo-109-1-185
10. Knudsen O: Cytomorphological investigations into the spermiocytogenesis of bulls with normal fertility and bulls with acquired disturbances in spermiogenesis. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand A Suppl 1954;101:1–79.
11. Barth AD, Oko RJ: Abnomal morphology of bovine spermatozoa. 1st edition. Malden, MA; Blackwell Publishing Inc: 1989.
12. Ferrer MS, Palomares RA, Hurley DJ, et al: Changes in serum testosterone and anti-Müllerian hormone concentration in bulls undergoing scrotal insulation. Dom Anim Endocrinol 2022;78:106685. doi: 10.1016/j.domaniend.2021.106685
13. Tate JL, Monke DR: Bull management/artificial insemination centers. In: McSweeney P, McNamara J: editors. Encyclopedia of dairy sciences. Volume 1. 2nd edition. Cambridge: Elsevier; 2022, pp. 178–186.
14. Wolfe DF, Bradley JT, Riddell MG: Characterization of seminal plasma proteins and sperm proteins in ejaculates from normospermic bulls and bulls with thermally-induced testicular degeneration. Theriogenology 1993;40:1083–1091. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(93)90376-G
15. Cunha MS, Bonato DV, Vrisman, DP, et al: Histopathological and ultrasonographic testicular evaluation of young bulls fed a hyperenergetic diet. Livest Sci 2019;225:85–90. doi: 10.1016/j.livsci.2019.04.006
16. Morrel JM: Heat stress and bull fertility. Theriogenology 2020;153:62–67. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2020.05.014
17. Garcia-Oliveros LN, Arruda RP, Batissaco L, et al: Chronological characterization of sperm morpho-functional damage and recovery after testicular heat stress in Nellore bulls. J Therm Biol 2022;106:103237. doi: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2022.103237
18. Barratt CLR: Spermatogenesis. In: Grudzinskas JG, Yovich JL: editors. Gametes – the spermatozoon. 1st edition, Cambridge; Cambridge University Press: 1995. pp. 250–267.
19. Turner RM: Pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management of testicular degeneration in stallions. Clin Tech Equine Pract 2007;6:278–284. doi: 10.1053/j.ctep.2007.09.006
20. Coulter GH, Cook RB, Kastelic JP: Effects of dietary energy on scrotal surface temperature, seminal quality, and sperm production in young beef bulls. J Anim Sci 1997;75:1048–1052. doi: 10.2527/1997.7541048x
21. McEntee K. Reproductive pathology of domestic mammals. San Diego, CA: Academic Press; 1990.
22. Hoflack G, Van den Broeck W, Maes D, et al: Testicular dysfunction is responsible for low sperm quality in Belgian Blue bulls. Theriogenology 2008;69:323–332. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2007.09.034
23. Watson ED, Clarke C, Else R, et al: Testicular degeneration in 3 stallions. Equine Vet J 1994;26:507–510. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1994.tb04060.x
24. Turner RM: Declining testicular function in the aging stallion: management options and future therapies. Anim Reprod Sci 2019;207:171–179. doi: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2019.06.009
25. Koziol JH, Armstrong CL: Society for theriogenology manual for breeding soundness examination of bulls. Montgomery, AL: Society for Theriogenology; 2018.
26. Barth AD, Alisio L, Aviles M, et al: Fibrotic lesions in the testis of bulls and relationship to semen quality. Anim Reprod Sci 2008;106:274–288. doi: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2007.05.002
27. Curtis SK, Amann RP: Testicular development and establishment of spermatogenesis in Holstein bulls. J Anim Sci 1981;53:1645–1657. doi: 10.2527/jas1982.5361645x
28. Pechman RD, Eilts BE: B-mode ultrasonography of the bull testicle. Theriogenology 1987;27:431–441. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(87)90231-7
29. Kastelic JP, Cook RB, Pierson RA, et al: Relationships among scrotal and testicular characteristics, sperm production, and seminal quality in 129 beef bulls. Can Vet J 2001;65:111–115.
30. Brito LF, Silva AE, Barbosa RT, et al: Effects of scrotal insulation on sperm production, semen quality, and testicular echotexture in Bos indicus and Bos indicus × Bos taurus bulls. Anim Reprod Sci 2003;79:1–15. doi: 10.1016/S0378-4320(03)00082-4
31. Brito LF, Barth AD, Wilde RE, et al: Testicular ultrasonogram pixel intensity during sexual development and its relationship with semen quality, sperm production, and quantitative testicular histology in beef bulls. Theriogenology 2012;78:69–76. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2012.01.022
32. Kastelic JP, Brito LF: Ultrasonography for monitoring reproductive function in the bull. Reprod Domest Anim 2012;47 Suppl 3:45–51. doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0531.2012.02042.x
33. Tomlinson M, Jennings A, Macrae A, et al: The value of trans-scrotal ultrasonography at bull breeding soundness evaluation (BBSE): The relationship between testicular parenchymal pixel intensity and semen quality. Theriogenology 2017;89:169–177. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2016.10.020
34. Ostermeier GC, Sargeant GA, Yandell BS, et al: Relatiosnhip of bull fertility to sperm nuclear shape. J Androl 2001;22:595–603.
35. Koziol JH, Armstrong CL: Sperm morphology of domestic animals. 1st edition. Hoboken, NJ; John Wiley & Sons: 2021.
36. Palmer CW: Welfare aspects of theriogenology: Investigating alternatives to electroejaculation of bulls. Theriogenology 2005;64:469–479. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2005.05.032
37. Heath AM, Carson RL, Purohit RC, et al: Effects of testicular biopsy in clinically normal bulls. J Am Vet Med Assoc 2002;220:507–512. doi: 10.2460/javma.2002.220.507
38. Contri A, Gloria A, Wegher L, et al: Successful use of a gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analog for the treatment of tertiary hypogonadism (GnRH deficiency) in a 5-year-old Belgian Blue bull. Vet Q 2012;32:51–54. doi: 10.1080/01652176.2012.677866
39. Blanchard T, Varner D, Bretzlaff K, et al: Testicular degeneration in large animals: identification and treatment. Vet Med 1991;86:537–542.
40. Brito LF, Silva AE, Barbosa RT, et al: Testicular thermoregulation in Bos indicus, crossbred and Bos taurus bulls: relationship with scrotal, testicular vascular cone and testicular morphology, and effects on semen quality and sperm production. Theriogenology 2004;61:511–528. doi: 10.1016/S0093-691X(03)00231-0
41. Zhang J, Ricketts S, Tanner S: Antisperm antibodies in the semen of a stallion following testicular trauma. Equine Vet J 1990;22:138–141. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1990.tb04228.x
42. Wolfe D, Hudson R, Carson, R, et al: Effect of unilateral orichectomy on semen quality in bulls. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1985;186:1291–1293.
2. Gledhill B: Inherited disorders causing infertility in the bull. Amer Vet Med Assoc J 197;162: 979–982.
3. Barth AD: Bull breeding soundness. 3rd edition. Saskatoon, SK: Western Canadian Association of Bovine Practitioners; 2013.
4. Barth AD, Bowman PA: The sequential appearance of sperm abnormalities after scrotal insulation or dexamethasone treatment in bulls. Can Vet J 1994;35:93–102.
5. Barth AD, Kastelic J: Testicular degeneration. In: Hopper RM: editor. Bovine reproduction. 2nd edition. Hoboken, NJ; John Wiley & Sons Inc: 2021. pp. 144–150.
6. Cavalieri J, Wang M, Johnson L: Chemical sterilisation of Bos indicus bull calves following intratesticular injection of zinc acetate: Effects on semen quality and testicular changes. Anim Reprod Sci 2015;156:23–33. doi: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2015.02.004
7. Welsh T, McCraw R, Johnson B: Influence of corticosteroids on testosterone production in the bull. Biol Reprod 1979;21:755–763. doi: 10.1095/biolreprod21.3.755
8. Welsh T, Randel R, Johnson B: Temporal relationships among peripheral blood concentrations of corticosteroids, luteinizing hormone and testosterone in bulls. Theriogenology 1979;12:169–179. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(79)90082-7
9. Welsh T, Johnson BH: Stress-induced alterations in secretion of corticosteroids, progesterone, luteinizing hormone, and testosterone in bulls. Endocrinology 1981;109:185–190. doi: 10.1210/endo-109-1-185
10. Knudsen O: Cytomorphological investigations into the spermiocytogenesis of bulls with normal fertility and bulls with acquired disturbances in spermiogenesis. Acta Pathol Microbiol Scand A Suppl 1954;101:1–79.
11. Barth AD, Oko RJ: Abnomal morphology of bovine spermatozoa. 1st edition. Malden, MA; Blackwell Publishing Inc: 1989.
12. Ferrer MS, Palomares RA, Hurley DJ, et al: Changes in serum testosterone and anti-Müllerian hormone concentration in bulls undergoing scrotal insulation. Dom Anim Endocrinol 2022;78:106685. doi: 10.1016/j.domaniend.2021.106685
13. Tate JL, Monke DR: Bull management/artificial insemination centers. In: McSweeney P, McNamara J: editors. Encyclopedia of dairy sciences. Volume 1. 2nd edition. Cambridge: Elsevier; 2022, pp. 178–186.
14. Wolfe DF, Bradley JT, Riddell MG: Characterization of seminal plasma proteins and sperm proteins in ejaculates from normospermic bulls and bulls with thermally-induced testicular degeneration. Theriogenology 1993;40:1083–1091. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(93)90376-G
15. Cunha MS, Bonato DV, Vrisman, DP, et al: Histopathological and ultrasonographic testicular evaluation of young bulls fed a hyperenergetic diet. Livest Sci 2019;225:85–90. doi: 10.1016/j.livsci.2019.04.006
16. Morrel JM: Heat stress and bull fertility. Theriogenology 2020;153:62–67. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2020.05.014
17. Garcia-Oliveros LN, Arruda RP, Batissaco L, et al: Chronological characterization of sperm morpho-functional damage and recovery after testicular heat stress in Nellore bulls. J Therm Biol 2022;106:103237. doi: 10.1016/j.jtherbio.2022.103237
18. Barratt CLR: Spermatogenesis. In: Grudzinskas JG, Yovich JL: editors. Gametes – the spermatozoon. 1st edition, Cambridge; Cambridge University Press: 1995. pp. 250–267.
19. Turner RM: Pathogenesis, diagnosis, and management of testicular degeneration in stallions. Clin Tech Equine Pract 2007;6:278–284. doi: 10.1053/j.ctep.2007.09.006
20. Coulter GH, Cook RB, Kastelic JP: Effects of dietary energy on scrotal surface temperature, seminal quality, and sperm production in young beef bulls. J Anim Sci 1997;75:1048–1052. doi: 10.2527/1997.7541048x
21. McEntee K. Reproductive pathology of domestic mammals. San Diego, CA: Academic Press; 1990.
22. Hoflack G, Van den Broeck W, Maes D, et al: Testicular dysfunction is responsible for low sperm quality in Belgian Blue bulls. Theriogenology 2008;69:323–332. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2007.09.034
23. Watson ED, Clarke C, Else R, et al: Testicular degeneration in 3 stallions. Equine Vet J 1994;26:507–510. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1994.tb04060.x
24. Turner RM: Declining testicular function in the aging stallion: management options and future therapies. Anim Reprod Sci 2019;207:171–179. doi: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2019.06.009
25. Koziol JH, Armstrong CL: Society for theriogenology manual for breeding soundness examination of bulls. Montgomery, AL: Society for Theriogenology; 2018.
26. Barth AD, Alisio L, Aviles M, et al: Fibrotic lesions in the testis of bulls and relationship to semen quality. Anim Reprod Sci 2008;106:274–288. doi: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2007.05.002
27. Curtis SK, Amann RP: Testicular development and establishment of spermatogenesis in Holstein bulls. J Anim Sci 1981;53:1645–1657. doi: 10.2527/jas1982.5361645x
28. Pechman RD, Eilts BE: B-mode ultrasonography of the bull testicle. Theriogenology 1987;27:431–441. doi: 10.1016/0093-691X(87)90231-7
29. Kastelic JP, Cook RB, Pierson RA, et al: Relationships among scrotal and testicular characteristics, sperm production, and seminal quality in 129 beef bulls. Can Vet J 2001;65:111–115.
30. Brito LF, Silva AE, Barbosa RT, et al: Effects of scrotal insulation on sperm production, semen quality, and testicular echotexture in Bos indicus and Bos indicus × Bos taurus bulls. Anim Reprod Sci 2003;79:1–15. doi: 10.1016/S0378-4320(03)00082-4
31. Brito LF, Barth AD, Wilde RE, et al: Testicular ultrasonogram pixel intensity during sexual development and its relationship with semen quality, sperm production, and quantitative testicular histology in beef bulls. Theriogenology 2012;78:69–76. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2012.01.022
32. Kastelic JP, Brito LF: Ultrasonography for monitoring reproductive function in the bull. Reprod Domest Anim 2012;47 Suppl 3:45–51. doi: 10.1111/j.1439-0531.2012.02042.x
33. Tomlinson M, Jennings A, Macrae A, et al: The value of trans-scrotal ultrasonography at bull breeding soundness evaluation (BBSE): The relationship between testicular parenchymal pixel intensity and semen quality. Theriogenology 2017;89:169–177. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2016.10.020
34. Ostermeier GC, Sargeant GA, Yandell BS, et al: Relatiosnhip of bull fertility to sperm nuclear shape. J Androl 2001;22:595–603.
35. Koziol JH, Armstrong CL: Sperm morphology of domestic animals. 1st edition. Hoboken, NJ; John Wiley & Sons: 2021.
36. Palmer CW: Welfare aspects of theriogenology: Investigating alternatives to electroejaculation of bulls. Theriogenology 2005;64:469–479. doi: 10.1016/j.theriogenology.2005.05.032
37. Heath AM, Carson RL, Purohit RC, et al: Effects of testicular biopsy in clinically normal bulls. J Am Vet Med Assoc 2002;220:507–512. doi: 10.2460/javma.2002.220.507
38. Contri A, Gloria A, Wegher L, et al: Successful use of a gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) analog for the treatment of tertiary hypogonadism (GnRH deficiency) in a 5-year-old Belgian Blue bull. Vet Q 2012;32:51–54. doi: 10.1080/01652176.2012.677866
39. Blanchard T, Varner D, Bretzlaff K, et al: Testicular degeneration in large animals: identification and treatment. Vet Med 1991;86:537–542.
40. Brito LF, Silva AE, Barbosa RT, et al: Testicular thermoregulation in Bos indicus, crossbred and Bos taurus bulls: relationship with scrotal, testicular vascular cone and testicular morphology, and effects on semen quality and sperm production. Theriogenology 2004;61:511–528. doi: 10.1016/S0093-691X(03)00231-0
41. Zhang J, Ricketts S, Tanner S: Antisperm antibodies in the semen of a stallion following testicular trauma. Equine Vet J 1990;22:138–141. doi: 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1990.tb04228.x
42. Wolfe D, Hudson R, Carson, R, et al: Effect of unilateral orichectomy on semen quality in bulls. J Am Vet Med Assoc 1985;186:1291–1293.
Published
2023-04-19
How to Cite
Koziol J., & Palmer C. (2023). Pathophysiology, diagnosis, and management of testicular degeneration in the bull. Clinical Theriogenology, 15. https://doi.org/10.58292/ct.v15.9271
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