Tetracycline, an antibiotic often prescribed for acne, can significantly shorten sperm lifespan and affect future generations, according to a study on arachnids reported in the journal Nature.
The researchers suggest that the drug may also have a similar effect on humans, causing epigenetic changes (which do not alter DNA sequence but can affect gene expression) in male genital tissues. Moreover, these changes can be passed on to male descendants.
David and Jeanne Zeh from the University of Nevada in Reno analyzed three generations of Cordylochernes scorpioides. They are small predatory arachnids, resembling a scorpion.
Both males and females were given a weekly dose of tetracycline from birth to adulthood. Subsequent generations did not receive the antibiotic. When compared to a control group, the researchers did not notice that tetracycline influenced arachnid growth, female reproductive function, or male sperm count. It turned out, however, that the antibiotic reduces sperm viability to 25%, and this effect also applies to male descendants in the next generation (in the third generation, the effect of tetracycline was no longer visible).
Tetracycline is an antibiotic often used in antibacterial therapy and to fight infections in arthropods caused, among others, by by the Wolbachia bacterium. In humans, this antibiotic is often prescribed to treat acne.