{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,27]],"date-time":"2026-08-27T19:36:14Z","timestamp":1787859374383,"version":"build-2784847793"},"reference-count":33,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,2]],"date-time":"2025-07-02T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1751414400000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Vet. Sci."],"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Introduction<\/jats:title><jats:p>This study examines the detrimental effects of high-temperature environments on canine testicular function and reproductive health, and investigates the potential of <jats:italic>Epimedii Folium<\/jats:italic>, particularly its active component icariin, in alleviating these effects and improving testicular function.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>A completely randomized single-factor design was employed, involving 24 adult male Beagle dogs (9.82\u202f\u00b1\u202f0.73\u202fkg) assigned randomly to four treatment groups, with six dogs in each group. The groups included a negative control group (\u201cControl\u201d), a positive control group exposed to testicular heat stress (\u201cModel\u201d), and two icariin-treated groups receiving daily doses of 0.5\u202fg\/kg (Icariin-L) and 1.0\u202fg\/kg (Icariin-H), respectively. All groups, except the negative control, underwent a testicular heat stress model to induce damage and assess the effects of icariin on sperm quality, testicular function, hormone levels, protein expression, and testicular histological changes.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>Icariin supplementation improved sperm quality under heat stress, as indicated by increased total sperm count and motility, along with a reduction in sperm malformation rate (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.01). It also restored adenosine triphosphate (ATPase) activities (Na<jats:sup>+<\/jats:sup>-K<jats:sup>+<\/jats:sup>-ATPase, Mg<jats:sup>2+<\/jats:sup>-ATPase, and Ca<jats:sup>2+<\/jats:sup>-ATPase) and serum hormone levels (<jats:italic>GnRH<\/jats:italic>, <jats:italic>LH<\/jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>E2<\/jats:italic>) (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.01). Western blot analysis revealed that icariin upregulated steroidogenic proteins (<jats:italic>STAR<\/jats:italic>, <jats:italic>17\u03b2HSD<\/jats:italic>, and <jats:italic>CYP450<\/jats:italic>) and the tight junction protein <jats:italic>ZO-1<\/jats:italic> (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.01), while downregulating the <jats:italic>BAX<\/jats:italic> expression (a key regulator of mitochondrial apoptosis) and enhancing the <jats:italic>BCL-2<\/jats:italic> expression (a major anti-apoptotic factor in the <jats:italic>BCL-2<\/jats:italic> family) (<jats:italic>p<\/jats:italic>\u202f&amp;lt;\u202f0.01). Histological assessments demonstrated that icariin mitigated heat-induced damage to seminiferous tubules, epithelial thinning, and spermatogonia degeneration. Furthermore, molecular docking analysis confirmed a strong binding affinity between icariin and <jats:italic>17\u03b2HSD<\/jats:italic>, mediated by hydrogen bonding and hydrophobic interactions.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title><jats:p>These findings suggest that icariin may alleviate testicular heat stress by modulating testosterone synthesis, enhancing ATPase function, restoring blood\u2013testis barrier integrity, and inhibiting apoptosis. The dose-dependent efficacy (1.0\u202fg\/kg\u202f&amp;gt;\u202f0.5\u202fg\/kg) supports the potential of icariin as a possible therapeutic agent for improving reproductive health in dogs exposed to high-temperature environments.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fvets.2025.1631149","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,2]],"date-time":"2025-07-02T12:28:26Z","timestamp":1751459306000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":4,"title":["Evaluation of the efficacy of icariin against heat stress-induced spermatogenic dysfunction in the testes of dogs"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Baoan","family":"Li","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Liuwei","family":"Xie","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mingqiang","family":"Song","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiumin","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chuanguo","family":"Yan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wanpeng","family":"Gao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wenxing","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yang","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,7,2]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"12","DOI":"10.3390\/ani11010012","article-title":"New 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