Infectious Burden and Semen Parameters - 19/04/17
, Natale Figura b, Maria Stella Campagna b, Francesca Iacoponi c, Stefano Gonnelli b, Giulia Collodel aAbstract |
Objective |
To investigate the relationship between chronic infections detected in serum and semen quality. The pathogen burden is a concept consisting in the observation that, in patients with heart disease, damaging effects of the coronary arteries increase concomitantly with the number of agents responsible for chronic infections to which patients mounted a serological response. Previous observations that Helicobacter pylori infection may reduce the semen quality prompted us to perform the present study.
Methods |
Blood and semen samples were collected from 73 selected men, enrolled from January 2014 to January 2015. Semen characteristics were evaluated by light and transmission electron microscopy. Transmission electron microscopy data were quantified with a mathematical formula providing numerical scores, such as fertility index (FI, number of sperm free from ultrastructural defects) and the percentages of sperm apoptosis, immaturity, and necrosis. Serum samples were examined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay for the presence of immunoglobulin G to the most common agents of chronic infections such as H. pylori (HP), Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP), Chlamydophila pneumoniae (CP), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1), and cytomegalovirus (CMV).
Results |
The prevalence of infections was as follows: HP 43.8%, CP 46.6%, MP 72.6%, EBV 95.9%, HSV-1 74.0%, and CMV 46.6%. Concomitantly with the increased number of pathogens against which the patients mounted a significant antibody response, sperm concentration (P <.05), sperm motility (P <.001), and fertility index (P <.001) were significantly reduced and the percentage of necrotic sperm was increased (P <.01).
Conclusion |
The higher the number of pathogens stimulating an immunoglobulin G systemic response, the lower was the semen quality.
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| Financial Disclosure: The authors declare that they have no relevant financial interests. |
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| Funding Support: This research did not receive any specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or non-profit sector. |
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| Author's Contributions: All the authors gave substantial contributions to research design, drafting of the paper, critical revision, and approval of the submitted version. Elena Moretti: study design, semen analysis, manuscript drafting, critical revision; Giulia Collodel: study design, semen analysis, critical revision; Maria Stella Campagna: enzyme-linked immunosorbent analysis; Francesca Iacoponi: statistical analysis, critical revision; Stefano Gonnelli: study design, critical revision; Natale Figura: study design, manuscript drafting, critical revision. |
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| Ethical Approval: The participants provided a written informed consent before enrolling in this study that was approved by the Ethics Committee of Azienda Ospedaliera Universitaria Senese (CEAOUS) (Comitato Etico per la Sperimentazione clinica c/o Farmacia AOUS—Viale Bracci—53100 Siena, E-mail c_etico@ao-siena.toscana.it). |
Vol 100
P. 90-96 - février 2017 Retour au numéro
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