Chronic restraint stress (CRS) disrupts the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal (HPG) axis, leading to sexual dysfunction.This study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of banana (Musa balbisiana Colla) peel flour (BPF) in mitigating sexual dysfunction in male Wistar rats (n = 5 per group).Following 21 days of CRS, rats were administered oral BPF (0.5, 1, or 2 mg/kg) or sertraline for 21 days.BPF effectively reversed hormonal dysregulation by significantly lowering corticosterone levels (p < 0.001) and restoring plasma serotonin and testosterone levels (p < 0.001).Notably, the 1 mg/kg dosage produced the most significant improvement in sexual performance, evidenced by reduced mounting latency and increased intromission frequency (p < 0.05). Molecularly, CRS induced apoptosis-related gene expression changes by upregulatingBax and p53 mRNA while downregulating Bcl-2 (p < 0.001), correlating with increased stress-associated p53 immunoreactivity in spermatogenic cells.These findings represent transcriptional changes consistent with altered apoptosis-related signaling.BPF reversed these changes, significantly improving Johnsen scores (p < 0.05) and preserving seminiferous tubule integrity.Crucially, the 1 mg/kg dose was identified as the optimal therapeutic dose, exhibiting superior efficacy in suppressing p53 protein expression compared to the highest dose.Likely mediated by tryptophan and polyphenols, BPF restores neuroendocrine equilibrium and reduces susceptibility to germ cell apoptosisrelated signaling.Thus, BPF presents a promising natural therapeutic for stress-related male reproductive dysfunction.
Meliala et al. (2026) studied this question.