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Castration Eliminates the Impairment Effects of Nandrolone on Passive Avoidance Learning of Adolescent Male Rats

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Neurophysiology Aims and scope

In recent years, the misuse of nandrolone decanoate (ND) among non-athletes, especially adolescent males, has become a growing problem due to the adverse effects of this drug. In our previous study, we have shown that pre-training administration of a high ND dose (100 μg/2.5μl) impairs the acquisition of passive avoidance learning (PAL), but the underlying mechanism has not been clearly evaluated. So, the aim of our study was to evaluate the mechanism of ND effects on the acquisition of PAL in adolescent male rats. Wistar adolescent male rats were divided into 11 groups. Control group received DMSO (2.5μl) + + DMSO (2.5μl), while some experimental groups received ND (100μg/2.5μl), flutamide (5μg/2.5μl), anastrozole (1, 2.5, 5 and 10μg/2.5μl), flutamide (5μg/2.5μl) + ND (100μg/2.5μl), and anastrozole (1μg/2.5μl) + ND (100μg/2.5μl) before training. Rats of groups 10 and 11 were castrated and received i.c.v. 2.5 μl DMSO or 100 μg ND after castration. As was found, administration of 100 μg ND impaired the acquisition of PAL during adolescence, but administration of the androgen receptors blocker and castration could abolish the impairment effects of ND on learning and memory. Therefore, it is suggested that ND affects PAL via activation of androgenic receptors and changing the circulating levels of testosterone.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Health Technology Institute, Fertility and Infertility Research Center, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

    F. Moradpour, Z. Salimi & F. Zarei

  2. Department of Physiology, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran

    F. Moradpour, Z. Salimi, F. Zarei, A. Pourmotabbed, S. E. Nedaei & M. Veisi

  3. Department of Biology, Center for Biomedical Research, University of Victoria, Victoria, Canada

    F. Moradpour

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  1. F. Moradpour
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  2. Z. Salimi
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  4. A. Pourmotabbed
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Correspondence to S. E. Nedaei.

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Moradpour, F., Salimi, Z., Zarei, F. et al. Castration Eliminates the Impairment Effects of Nandrolone on Passive Avoidance Learning of Adolescent Male Rats. Neurophysiology 53, 93–100 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11062-022-09920-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11062-022-09920-0

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