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Glucagon-like peptide-1 analog, liraglutide, alters blood-testis barrier permeability in juvenile healthy rats.
Environ Toxicol Pharmacol · 2026
Last updated 2026-05-28In a study on young rats, daily doses of the GLP-1 drug liraglutide from day 20 to 33—when the blood-testis barrier (BTB) normally forms—temporarily increased the number of tubules with a leaky BTB and raised cell death. By adulthood, the rats’ BTB function returned to normal, sperm production was unchanged, and all animals showed complete sperm development.
AI summary of the abstract below.
| Journal | Environ Toxicol Pharmacol, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Citations | 0 |
| Molecules | liraglutide |
Abstract
Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) analogue liraglutide has recently been approved for treating obese children. However, little is known about liraglutide's effect on testicular function during the juvenile developmental period, particularly regarding the blood-testis barrier (BTB) formation. This study analyses the impact of liraglutide treatment on BTB function in young rats and its consequences in adulthood. Rats received a daily dose of liraglutide from postnatal day (Pnd) 20 to 33, the period when a functional BTB is formed. At Pnd 34, liraglutide promoted a significant increase in permeable tubules, accompanied by increased cell apoptosis, suggesting an altered BTB. Adult animals that received liraglutide during the juvenile period showed restored BTB permeability and complete spermatogenesis without changes in daily sperm production. In conclusion, liraglutide treatment during the juvenile stage alters BTB function, but this impairment is reversible and may not compromise adult testicular function.
Verbatim abstract via PubMed 41856344 ↗
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