Jet
11-17-2010, 10:02 AM
Testicles have two important functions:
Producing testosterone
producing sperm cells to pass your DNA to the next generation
I really wonder whether our silly hobby like kicking and squeezing of the testicles could harm those two functions. As far as my knowledge goes I have the following opinion on those 2 points:
I think testosterone production won't be affected. In your brain there is a part which measures the concentration of testosterone in the blood. If concentration is too low it will create a hormone which tells the testicles to produce more testosterone. If concentration is too high it will reduce the production of that hormone. So everything is perfect in control. In fact even with one testicle your testosterone levels should be fine. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testosterone (section Regulation) for more info
I do not have a clue about this one. Let's say you squeeze your testicle too hard, will it affect how they clone DNA? Will my children have 3 arms instead of 2 because father got his testicles squeezed? I caught the following on the internet and was quite shocked:
Testicular and sperm DNA damage after treatment with fludarabine for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia
This study investigated whether chemotherapy using fludarabine (FLU) caused testicular damage and if cytotoxicity could be detected as sperm DNA damage in the single cell Comet assay, A patient with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia requesting preservation of fertility was treated with seven monthly cycles of fludarabine (45.8 mg total dose per cycle). Testicular assessments, serum follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LS-I), and testosterone measurements, semen analysis and sperm Comet assays were carried out at presentation (pre-FLU therapy), after 1 and 7 months of FLU treatment, and finally at 11 months after completion of chemotherapy. We found that testicular damage occurred within a month, as indicated by reduced testicular volume, oligozoospermia, elevated FSH and LB, and lower testosterone concentrations. Spermatozoa with a large range of DNA damage were detected in the samples from both the control and treated men. DNA damage in the spermatozoa was marked by 7 months of FLU treatment. The high levels of sperm DNA damage seen during and possibly persisting after treatment suggests that caution should be exercised if the ejaculates from these men are used for in-vitro fertility treatment. Further experiments are needed to assess the biological significance of these DNA changes; it may, however, be prudent at present to be cautious when counselling these patients.
from http://eprints.ucl.ac.uk/56834/
My testicle injury is the result of squeezing my own testicles too hard. I have sometimes uncomfortable feelings in the testicles (like the blood flow got blocked) and pain in the abdomen. I already went to a urolog (and even did a sound echo scan) and did a confession about what happened and how I fell but they say everything is fine. A relief but I still don't feel 100% safe. I want to do a MRI scan in the next few months.
Producing testosterone
producing sperm cells to pass your DNA to the next generation
I really wonder whether our silly hobby like kicking and squeezing of the testicles could harm those two functions. As far as my knowledge goes I have the following opinion on those 2 points:
I think testosterone production won't be affected. In your brain there is a part which measures the concentration of testosterone in the blood. If concentration is too low it will create a hormone which tells the testicles to produce more testosterone. If concentration is too high it will reduce the production of that hormone. So everything is perfect in control. In fact even with one testicle your testosterone levels should be fine. See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Testosterone (section Regulation) for more info
I do not have a clue about this one. Let's say you squeeze your testicle too hard, will it affect how they clone DNA? Will my children have 3 arms instead of 2 because father got his testicles squeezed? I caught the following on the internet and was quite shocked:
Testicular and sperm DNA damage after treatment with fludarabine for chronic lymphocytic leukaemia
This study investigated whether chemotherapy using fludarabine (FLU) caused testicular damage and if cytotoxicity could be detected as sperm DNA damage in the single cell Comet assay, A patient with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia requesting preservation of fertility was treated with seven monthly cycles of fludarabine (45.8 mg total dose per cycle). Testicular assessments, serum follicle stimulating hormone (FSH), luteinizing hormone (LS-I), and testosterone measurements, semen analysis and sperm Comet assays were carried out at presentation (pre-FLU therapy), after 1 and 7 months of FLU treatment, and finally at 11 months after completion of chemotherapy. We found that testicular damage occurred within a month, as indicated by reduced testicular volume, oligozoospermia, elevated FSH and LB, and lower testosterone concentrations. Spermatozoa with a large range of DNA damage were detected in the samples from both the control and treated men. DNA damage in the spermatozoa was marked by 7 months of FLU treatment. The high levels of sperm DNA damage seen during and possibly persisting after treatment suggests that caution should be exercised if the ejaculates from these men are used for in-vitro fertility treatment. Further experiments are needed to assess the biological significance of these DNA changes; it may, however, be prudent at present to be cautious when counselling these patients.
from http://eprints.ucl.ac.uk/56834/
My testicle injury is the result of squeezing my own testicles too hard. I have sometimes uncomfortable feelings in the testicles (like the blood flow got blocked) and pain in the abdomen. I already went to a urolog (and even did a sound echo scan) and did a confession about what happened and how I fell but they say everything is fine. A relief but I still don't feel 100% safe. I want to do a MRI scan in the next few months.