Trenbolone Acetate Metabolites Promote Ovarian Growth and Development in Adult Japanese Medaka (Oryzias Latipes)

Trenbolone acetate, a synthetic androgen, has been used as a growth promoter in beef cattle in the US since 1987. While several teleost studies have investigated the masculinization effects of the metabolite 17β-trenbolone, few have focused on the reproductive impacts of all three trenbolone acetate (TBA) metabolites including trendione. Adult female medaka (Oryzias latipes) were exposed to TBA metabolites (10, 100, and 1000ng/L) for 14days (n=3). Histological examination revealed that TBA metabolites (1000ng/L) significantly reduced the percentage of primary ovarian follicles and increased the percentage of vitellogenic follicles compared to control fish. 17α-Trenbolone significantly increased whereas trendione reduced whole body levels of estradiol-17β. Testosterone was significantly reduced by trendione treatment and only the highest dose of 17β-trenbolone and lowest dose of trendione altered 11-ketotestosterone. Additionally, TBA metabolites may be further broken down and/or metabolized or converted by the animal influencing both sex steroid levels and ovarian development.