HISTOLOGICAL CHANGES IN TESTICULAR STRUCTURE OF RABBIT BUCK FED DIETS SUPPLEMENTED WITH BLACK SEED (NIGELLA SATIVA)

Abstract

This study investigated the histological changes in testis of rabbit buck fed diets supplemented with Black seed (Nigella sativa). Twenty Chinchilla X New Zealand White, 5-6 weeks old, were balanced for weight and assigned to four treatments T1, T2, T3 and T4 of five rabbits each in a completely randomized design. The four treatment groups were supplemented with black seed (Nigella sativa) at 0, 0.5, 1.0 and 1.5% levels, respectively. After twelve weeks of feeding, the bucks were sacrificed and the testes were extracted for histological evaluation. The results showed that the seminiferous tubules in testes of rabbit bucks fed varying levels of Black seed had normal and larger, well arranged germ cell population than the control. As N. sativa supplementation increased up to 1.5%, the testicular histo-architecture remained normal. This study demonstrated that N. sativa seeds, at 1.5% supplementation level in diet, possess the potential to improve and preserve the histo-architecture of rabbit testis.