New York – A study in mice finds that Zika virus infection ravages male mouse testes, and sharply reduces sperm counts and fertility.
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That raises a new concern about a possibly overlooked threat to people from the virus. But experts say it’s not at all clear that the same thing happens in men.
Experiments found testes of infected mice shrank about 90 percent by weight, while their output of useful sperm fell by three-quarters on average, and often more. Researchers found that the virus attacks the anatomical structure where sperm are made and reach maturity.
Testosterone levels also fell.
The mouse results appear in a paper released Monday by the journal Nature.