ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVES: Seminal plasma elicits recruitment of immune cells into the cervix. It increases in mice in vivo and in humans in vitro the endometrial epithelial expression of those cytokines and growth factors, which play an essential role in implantation. To analyse if the stimulatory effect of seminal plasma correlates to the quality of the sperm count, the immunomodulatory potential of seminal plasma of fertile and infertile men was studied. STUDY DESIGN: Seminal plasma from 34 volunteers with normal sperm count und from 28 men with oligozoospermia or asthenozoospermia was studied. Firstly, the concentrations of IL-6, IL-8, VEGF, TNFalpha, IL-1beta, TGFbeta1 und G-CSF were analysed by ELISA. Secondly, the immunomodulatory potential was studied by bioassays. Bioassays were set-up by isolation of peripheral mononuclear blood cells (PMBC), sensitized by stimulation with LPS. The assays were incubated with seminal plasma of both patient groups and secretion of IL-6, IL-8 and TNFalpha was analysed by ELISA. RESULTS: IL-6, IL-8, VEGF, TNFalpha, IL-1beta, TGFbeta1 and G-CSF were detected in seminal plasma. The bioassays revealed a significant increase of IL-6 and IL-8 and a decrease of TNFalpha by incubation with seminal plasma. The concentrations of all factors and the stimulatory and inhibitory potential of seminal plasma from men with oligozoospermia, asthenozoospermia and normozoospermia were not significantly different in ELISA- and bioassays. CONCLUSION: The experiments revealed a similar immunomodulatory potential of seminal plasma from men with normal and abnormal sperm counts, suggesting that male infertility is probably not caused by differences in the activity of seminal plasma.
Subject(s)
Infertility, Male/immunology , Leukocytes, Mononuclear , Oligospermia/immunology , Semen/immunology , Adult , Case-Control Studies , Cells, Cultured , Culture Media/chemical synthesis , Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor/metabolism , Humans , Interleukins/metabolism , Leukocytes, Mononuclear/immunology , Leukocytes, Mononuclear/metabolism , Male , Transforming Growth Factor beta1/metabolism , Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A/metabolismABSTRACT
Após a observaçäo da realidade na Unidade Básica de Saúde Parque das Indústrias do Município de Londrina, os autores verificaram, em vários levantamentos realizados, a deficiência no controle e distribuiçäo de medicamentos, bem como a falta dos mesmos para usuários desta Unidade. Portanto, objetivou-se analisar a sistemática de distribuiçäo e prescriçäo de medicamentos desses serviços nas Unidades Básicas de Saúde da Regiäo Sul, além de propor um esquema de controle para tal distribuiçäo. Para atingir tal objetivo, foram levantados dados através da aplicaçäo de questionários para 17 médicos e dentistas, 25 auxiliares de enfermagem, além de 51 pacientes que foram submetidos a consultas médicas ou odontológicas nas citadasUnidades Básicas de Saúde (UBS). Com a mesma finalidade, também foram realizadas entrevistas com a chefia da divisäo de unidades ambulatoriais da Secretaria Municipal de Saúde e Centrofarma do Serviço de Saúde do Município
