GnRH-agonist implantation of prepubertal male cats affects their reproductive performance and testicular LH receptor and FSH receptor expression.

Abstract This study was conducted to investigate the effect of GnRH-agonist implantation in prepubertal tomcats on sexual behavior, reproductive performance, and expression of testicular LH receptor (LHR) and FSH receptor (FSHR) and also to compare the testicular characteristics, LHR and FSHR expression between prepubertal and adult tomcats. In experiment 1, 3-month-old tomcats (n = 6/group) were either treated with or left without 4.7 mg deslorelin implants. Semen collection and evaluation were performed just before castration at 48 weeks after treatment; removed testes were analyzed for mRNA and protein expression of LHR and FSHR. We were able to collect semen from six non-treated cats, whereas in treated cats, semen was uncollectable. The results revealed that sexual behavior was absent in the implanted cats throughout the study period. Testicular volume was found to decrease from 30 weeks after treatment onward in the implanted cats compared to the controls (P  LHR and protein expression of FSHR between groups. The mRNA expression of FSHR was higher in the implanted (P  FSHR was higher in prepubertal cats (P  FSHR along with suppression of reproductive function without any adverse effects for at least 48 weeks in male cats.