In a new study being published in The World Journal of Men’s Health, testosterone production did not change upon CBD and/or THC exposure versus controls.
In addition to being published in The World Journal of Men’s Health, the study was published online ahead of print by the US National Library of Medicine with the title The Acute Exposure of Human Adult Testis Tissue to Cannabinoids THC and CBD Does Not Impact Testosterone Production Nor Germ Cell Lineage.
“While an increased risk of developing germ cell tumors has been established in regular cannabis consumers, there is conflicting evidence about an association between cannabis use and testosterone levels in those regular consumers”, states the study’s abstract. “In this context, we aimed to determine whether Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD), the two major and best-studied cannabinoids present in cannabis, also the most used for therapeutic applications, can directly impact the steroidogenic function and germ cell lineage of the human adult testis.”
For the study researchers “used our well-characterized organotypic culture of human testis, in which adult testis explants were exposed to CBD, THC, or CBD/THC [ratio 1:1] from 10-9 to 10-5 M for up to either 48 hours or 9 days of culture. The testes were obtained from multi-organ donors (n=13; mean age: 55.15±5.62 y).”
According to the study, “the testosterone production and the spatial distribution of Leydig cells did not change upon CBD and/or THC exposure versus controls after 48 hours or 9 days.”
The overall tissue morphology of the cannabinoids-exposed testis explants “was similar to their control upon 24 hours or 9 days of exposure, a finding confirmed by morphometric analyses on short-term cultures.”
In line, “the number of apoptotic cells was not affected by either 48 hours or 9 days of cannabinoids treatment versus mock. Cannabinoids had no impact on the number of proliferating cells nor on mRNA expression of genes encoding proteins involved in germ cell differentiation, meiosis, or Sertoli and Leydig functions after 24 hours exposure.”
Researchers conclude:
Altogether, these findings show an absence of acute direct effects of exposure to cannabis-derived cannabinoids THC and CBD on testicular testosterone production and germ cells ex vivo. Further studies are warranted to explore an indirect impact of cannabinoids on testis functions through the hypothalamic-pituitary-testis axis, as well as the potential effects of long-term exposures.
