ABSTRACT
Background: chlamydia trachomatis [CT] with damaging effects on sperm quality parameters can often cause infertility in men
Objective: the main objective of this study was to determine the diagnostic value of polymerase chain reaction [PCR] and enzyme linked immuno sorbent assay [ELISA] for screening and detecting CT in semen samples of infertile men
Materials and Methods: in this cross-sectional study, 465 men referring to the clinical laboratory of Royan Institute were chosen for primary screening and detection of the presence of CT. 93 samples were normozoospermia with normal sperm parameters i.e. sperm number, motility and morphology [Asymptomatic] and 372 had abnormal sperm parameters [Symptomatic] in semen analysis. ELISA test was performed as the screening test. Samples with optical density [OD] >0.200 were selected as the case and asymptomatic samples with OD <0.200 were selected as the control group for the confirmatory test. PCR assay was used to confirm the serological results
Results: in the case groups [n=62], 4 out of 32 symptomatic samples [12.5%], and 1 out of 30 asymptomatic samples [3.3%] revealed positive results in PCR. No PCR positive sample was observed in the control group [n=34]. The final results revealed that considering OD >0.400 as the ELISA positive, the diagnostic value of CT ELISA positive insymptomatic and asymptomatic infertile patients were 0.019 [7 of 372] and 0.021 [2 of 93], respectively. There was no relationship between the presence of CT infection and different sperm abnormalities
Conclusion: the anti-CT IgA ELISA test may be introduced as an appropriate tool for screening purpose in the seminal plasma to select suspicious samples for PCR confirmatory tests
ABSTRACT
Objective: Although key roles for dietary vitamin E [VITE] and fatty acid [FA] in fertility have been confirmed, limited data are available on the effects of VITE alone, or a constant level of VITE supplemented by dietary omega-6 and omega-3 FAs in combination on male reproduction. Consequently in this paper, the effects of VITE, sunflower oil, fish oil and their combination on rat sperm were investigated
Materials and Methods: We divided 50 mature male Wistar rats into 5 groups [n=10] in a experimental completely randomized design for eight weeks: i. Control [CTR]: standard diet; ii. Vitamin E diet [VITE]: 2 times greater than recommendations; iii. Sunflower oil group [n-6] [gavaged with 0.5 ml/day/rat sunflower oil+VITE diet]; iv. Fish oil group [n-3]: [gavaged with 0.5 ml/day/rat fish oil+VITE diet] and v. n-3+n-6 group [gavaged with 0.3 ml fish oil/day/rat+0.2 ml sunflower oil/day/rat+VITE diet]. The sperm parameters were measured by computer assisted semen analyzer [CASA]. All data were analyzed with SPSS software
Results: Feed intake decreased in groups which were administered sunflower oil compared with the other groups [P<0.05]. The groups which received only VITE or fish oil+VITE had a significantly higher concentration of sperm compared with the n-6+n-3 and CTR group [P<0.05]. VITE and n-3 showed significant improved progressive motility compared to the CTR group, whereas the n-6 and n-6+n-3 groups were in the middle [P<0.05]. The highest sperm kinematic parameters were observed in the VITE only group. There was no strong correlation between sperm parameters and blood lipid profiles
Conclusion: Dietary VITE and fish oil+VITE can improve sperm quality. Our findings can be a focus for improvements in sperm quantity and motility in fertile animals using only dietary VITE
ABSTRACT
Male infertility is a multifactorial disorder, which affects approximately 10% of couples at childbearing age with substantial clinical and social impact. Genetic factors are associated with the susceptibility to spermatogenic impairment in humans. Recently, SEPT12 is reported as a critical gene for spermatogenesis. This gene encodes a testis specific member of Septin proteins, a family of polymerizing GTP-binding proteins. SEPT12 in association with other Septins is an essential annulus component in mature sperm. So, it is hypothesized that genetic alterations of SEPT12 may be concerned in male infertility. The objective of this research is exploration of new single nucleotide polymorphism G5508A in the SEPT12 gene association with idiopathic male infertility in Iranian men. In this case control study, 67 infertile men and 100 normal controls were analyzed for genetic alterations in the active site coding region of SEPT12, using polymerase chain reaction sequencing technique. Fisher exact test was used for statistical analysis and p<0.05 was considered as statistically significant. Genotype analysis indicated that G5508A polymorphic SEPT12 alleles were distributed in three peaks of frequency in both control and diseases groups. Categorization of the alleles into [GG], [GA], [AA] types revealed a significant difference between infertile patients [azoospermic and asthenospermic] and normal controls [p=0.005]. According to our finding we suggest that G5508A polymorphism in SEPT12 gene can affect spermatogenesis in men, the opinion needs more investigation in different populations
ABSTRACT
Objective: Melatonin, the chief secretory product of the pineal gland, regulates dynamic physiological adaptations that occur in seasonally breeding mammals as a response to changes in daylight hours. Because of the presence of melatonin in semen and the membrane melatonin receptor in spermatozoa, the impact of melatonin on the regulation of male infertility is still questionable. The aim of this study was to determine the effects of endogenous melatonin on human semen parameters [sperm concentration, motility and normal morphology], DNA fragmentation [DF] and nuclear maturity
Materials and Methods: In this clinical prospective study, semen samples from 75 infertile men were routinely analyzed and assessed for melatonin and total antioxidant capacity [TAC] levels using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA] and colorimetric assay kits, respectively. DF was examined by the sperm chromatin dispersion [SCD] test. Acidic aniline blue staining was used to detect chromatin defects in the sperm nuclei
Results: There was no significant correlation between seminal plasma melatonin and TAC with sperm parameters and nuclear maturity. However, we observed a positive significant correlation between DF and melatonin level [r=0.273, P<0.05]
Conclusion: Melatonin in seminal plasma is positively correlated with damaged sperm DNA of infertile patients. The mechanism of this phenomenon needs further study
ABSTRACT
The majority of cancer treatments are invasive. Gonadal injuries cause reductions in fertility which results in lack of hope for conception in cancer patients and frustration for their partners. Fortunately, current advancements in cryopreservation and transplantation sciences regarding fertility preservation lead to cryostorage of gonads and preservation prior to the onset of chemo- and radiotherapy treatments. Accordingly in women, the main goal of ovarian cryopreservation is establishment of fertility and hormonal cycle restoration after auto-transplantation. Although the history of ovarian transplantation dates back to the 19[th] century, there are reports of live human births following ovarian tissue cryopreservation and transplantation since the past 100 years. Despite this success and additional research in the field of ovarian cryopreservation and transplantation, numerous questions remain unanswered. Among these questions, growth factors and hormonal changes because of their effects on follicular function appear to be more important during ovarian tissue transplantation. This review attempts to address hormones and growth factor functions with the specifics of ovarian cryopreservation and auto-transplantation
Subject(s)
Humans , Female , Gonadotropins , Hormones/blood , Ovary/physiology , Tissue TransplantationABSTRACT
Infertility can be a major concern for couples trying to conceive, and occupational hazards may constitute a main cause of infertility in men. Studies conducted throughout the world indicate that physical and chemical hazards in the workplace can have a negative impact on male fertility. The main objective of this study was to determine the frequency of occupational categories of men who attended an infertility clinic, and to evaluate the differences in the semen quality parameters among occupational categories. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 1164 males who were referred to the Infertility Research Center in Tehran for treatment of infertility in order to evaluate the effects of certain occupations on infertility. The participants were divided into several categories according to their occupations and evaluated by means of a questionnaire for duration of infertility, BMI, sperm count, percentage of normal sperm morphology and percentages of sperm with class A and class B motilities. Descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, and correlations were conducted using SPSS 16.0 for Windows. There were no statistically significant differences in the mean sperm count or sperm morphology between occupational categories. Assessment of the differences in the frequency of sperm motility classes between occupational categories revealed a significant difference only in the frequency of sperm with class B motility. The lowest mean percentages of sperm with class B motility were seen in those involved in the transportation industry, a finding in agreement with a number of other researches. Our findings revealed an association between occupation and sperm motility. Since our study population was relatively small and in many cases exposures to work hazards were brief, a larger study group must be evaluated in order to support the preliminary results of this study