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Hamsters’ testicles shrink with Covid-19 – study — Analysis

Researchers said the animals’ reproductive organs reduced in both size and weight

Research has shown that Covid-19 infects hamsters and causes a variety of undesirable effects to their reproductive organs. Shrunken testicles and an abrupt decrease in the number of sperm can be caused by Covid-19 infection.. The study, published on Friday in the peer-reviewed journal ‘Clinical Infectious Diseases’, was undertaken at the University of Hong Kong.

Researchers infected the hamsters with Covid-19 intranasally to see if it had any effect on their reproductive systems. Some of the animals were vaccinated while some weren’t. They were then put to sleep between 1 and 120 days following infection. Their testicles were also examined.

According to the study, there were an estimated 1.2 million people living in this area. “acute decrease”In sperm count, testosterone and levels of hormones four to seven days following infection in unvaccinated Hamsters.

The testicular swelling, hemorhage and necrosis were all consistent findings by researchers. They also observed degeneration in the tubules within the organ. In the 120-day-old sample, researchers noticed that these changes had been present as early as seven days after the infection.

Also, infected hamsters experienced a decrease in size and weight for their testicles. Local reporter provided photos of research showing the observed decrease in size. 

“SARS-CoV-2 [Covid-19]Can cause chronic and acute testicular injuries in hamsters. This is consistent with reports of hypogonadism and clinical orchitis in COVID-19-recovered COVID-19 patients. [human] males,” the study’s authors concluded.

According to the researchers, a follow-up study could examine long-term sperm counts and sex hormone profiles of those men who had recovered from Covid.

Although hamsters can be used to observe the effects of viruses like Covid-19, and they are often used in research of respiratory viruses (e.g. Covid-19), their biological differences mean that the results may not accurately reflect the human reaction.

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