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Multiple Morphological Abnormalities of the Sperm Flagella (MMAF) is a severe form of teratozoospermia associated with several sperm flagellar abnormalities. The study included 52 patients with MMAF syndrome and a control group of 25 fertile men. The impact of nuclear sperm quality on intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) results was studied in 20 couples. TUNEL assay was used to assess sperm DNA fragmentation and aniline-blue staining was used to assess chromatin condensation. To investigate chromosomal meiotic segregation, we used fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). Semen morphology analysis revealed a mosaic of multiple flagella morphological abnormalities, including 46.73% short flagella, 16.22% bent flagella, 22.07% coiled flagella, and 10.90% absent flagella, all of which were associated with a high percentage of sperm head abnormalities. The mean DNA fragmentation index was substantially higher in patients compared to controls ( p  = 0.001), whereas the rate of aniline blue-reacted spermatozoa was not significantly different. There was a significant difference in aneuploidy frequencies between the two groups ( p  < 0.05). Infertile males with MMAF syndrome had lower sperm nuclear quality, which affected ICSI results. As a result, better sperm selection procedures are being employed to increase the success rate of assisted reproductive technologies (ART).

According to the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization, the quantities of pesticide used around the world have increased regularly since the 1990s. Given that pesticides may be classified as carcinogenic, mutagenic, neurotoxic, or toxic for reproduction, some have endocrine-disrupting properties that might be associated with a decline in sperm parameters in general and sperm DNA integrity in particular. These days, a sperm analysis is not enough to determine the etiology of male infertility. Genome integrity analysis is a key step in clarifying a large proportion of cases of male infertility. The objective of the present retrospective study was to assess the impact of self-reported pesticide exposure on sperm parameters and sperm DNA integrity in men consulting for infertility. In a retrospective study, a population of 671 men living in the Picardy region of France were assessed in a conventional sperm parameter analysis, Shorr staining, a DNA fragmentation assay (terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUDP nick-end labelling), and chromatin decondensation with aniline blue staining. The exposed and the non-exposed groups did not differ significantly in some of the conventional sperm parameters (including volume, sperm count, and percent typical forms). However, vitality, progressive motility, and non-progressive motility were significantly lower in the exposed group. Levels of DNA fragmentation and chromatin decondensation were moderately higher in the exposed group., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Purpose: To evaluate levels of sperm DNA fragmentation and enzymatic antioxidant status in seminal plasma of Tunisian fertile and infertile men in order to assess the effects of seminal oxidative stress on sperm DNA integrity and semen quality., Methods: Semen samples from 100 infertile patients (40 oligoasthenoteratozoospermics, 31 teratozoospermics and 29 asthenozoospermics) and 50 fertile men (controls) were analyzed for DNA fragmentation by TUNEL assay and biochemical parameters. Seminal antioxidant activities (Superoxide dismutase, Glutathione peroxidase and Catalase) and malondialdehyde concentrations were measured spectrophotometrically., Results: Sperm DNA fragmentation and malondialdehyde levels in infertile groups were more elevated than controls. Nevertheless, the activities of the antioxidant enzymes were significantly lower in abnormal groups compared to normozoospermics. Sperm DNA fragmentation was closely and positively correlated to malondialdehyde levels (r = 0.37, P = 0.008); meanwhile, reduced seminal antioxidant profile was negatively associated to sperm DNA fragmentation. Interestingly, we noted also that sperm DNA fragmentation was negatively correlated to sperm motility (r = -0.54, P < 0.001) and positively associated to the abnormal sperm morphology (r = 0.57, P = 0.002)., Conclusions: This report revealed that increased sperm DNA fragmentation can be due to the impaired seminal enzymatic antioxidant profile and increased Lipid peroxidation. Our results sustain that the evaluation of sperm DNA fragmentation and seminal oxidative biomarkers in infertile men is recommended as a consistent prognostic tool for male infertility assessment.

Background: Growing evidence indicates that oxidative stress can be a primary cause of male infertility. Non-enzymatic antioxidants play an important protective role against oxidative damages and lipid peroxidation. Human seminal plasma is a natural reservoir of antioxidants. The aim of this study was to determine glutathione (GSH) concentrations, trace element levels (zinc and selenium) and the lipid peroxidation end product, malondialdehyde (MDA), in the seminal plasma of men with different fertility potentials., Methods: Semen samples from 60 fertile men (normozoospermics) and 190 infertile patients (74 asthenozoospermics, 56 oligozoospermics, and 60 teratozoospermics) were analyzed for physical and biochemical parameters. Zinc (Zn) and selenium (Se) levels were estimated by atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Total GSH (GSHt), oxidized GSH (GSSG), reduced GSH (GSHr) and MDA concentrations were measured spectrophotometrically., Results: Zn and Se concentrations in seminal plasma of normozoospermics were more elevated than the three abnormal groups. Nevertheless, only the Zn showed significant differences. On the other hand, Zn showed positive and significant correlations with sperm motility (P = 0.03, r = 0.29) and count (P < 0.01, r = 0.49); however Se was significantly correlated only with sperm motility (P < 0.01, r = 0.36). GSHt, GSSG and GSHr were significantly higher in normozoospermics than in abnormal groups. We noted a significant association between seminal GSHt and sperm motility (P = 0.03). GSSG was highly correlated to sperm motility (P < 0.001) and negatively associated to abnormal morphology (P < 0.001). GSHr was significantly associated to total sperm motility (P < 0.001) and sperm count (P = 0.01). MDA levels were significantly higher in the three abnormal groups than in normozoospermics. Rates of seminal MDA were negatively associated to sperm motility (P < 0.01; r = -0.24) and sperm concentration (P = 0.003; r = -0.35) Meanwhile, there is a positive correlation between seminal lipid peroxidation and the percentage of abnormal morphology (P = 0.008)., Conclusions: This report revealed that decreased seminal GSH and trace element deficiencies are implicated in low sperm quality and may be an important indirect biomarker of idiopathic male infertility. Our results sustain that the evaluation of seminal antioxidant status in infertile men is necessary and can be helpful in fertility assessment from early stages.

Human seminal plasma is a natural reservoir of antioxidants that protect spermatozoa from oxidative damages. There is evidence in literature supports the fact that impairments in seminal antioxidant and lipid per-oxidation status play important roles in the physiopathology of male infertility. Our present study forms the first one which was carried out in Tunisia. We evaluated the antioxidant status in the seminal plasma of 120 infertile men programmed to In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) for the first tentative. Patients were characterized by an idiopathic infertility. They were divided into three groups: normozoospermics who were considered as controls (n=40), asthenozoospermics (Astheno; n=45) and oligoasthenoteratozoospermics (OAT; n=35). Seminal activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) and the levels of glutathione (GSH), zinc (Zn) and malondialdehyde (MDA) were measured. With the significant increase of the seminal activities of SOD and GPX in normozoospermics group, there were positive correlations observed between this enzymes and sperm quality. Also, significant elevated rates of seminal zinc and GSH were observed in control group, but there was contradictory associations reflecting the effects of these antioxidants on semen parameters. However, we noted significant increase of MDA levels in groups with abnormal seminogram. We showed negative associations between this per-oxidative marker and sperm parameters. These results obviously suggested that impairment on seminal antioxidants is an important risk factor for low sperm quality associated to idiopathic infertility and as a result can lead to poor IVF outcome.

Aim: evaluation of our experience in assisted fertilization by ICSI with analysis of prognostic factors., Methods: retrospective study of 199 cycles of ICSI during a 2 years and half period between September 2001 and February 2004. The procedure of ICSI included several stages: collection and preparation of the semen, stake in culture of oocytes, removing of cumulus cells and microinjection of oocytes, control of the fertilization and embryo transfer respectively 18 to 22 hours and 48 hours after the microinjection., Results: the mean age of the patients was 32,4 years and the mean duration of infertility was 7 years. The mean fertilization rate was 50%. The mean number of embryos transferred was 2,46. We got 41 pregnancies of which 36 were clinical pregnancies (87,8%). The pregnancy rate was 26,1% by transfer and 21% by retrieval. The women age was the first prognostic factor of ICSI. The pregnancy rate was 27% before the age of 35 years, decreases with age and annul himself after 40 years (P=0,02). The other prognostic factor was the number of 4 cells embryos transferred. The pregnancy rate increases with significant way with the number of 4 cells embryos transferred: 15% after transfer of only one embryo versus 43% after transfer of 3 embryos or more (P=0,04). The ICSI prognostic has not been influenced with significant way by the origin or the sperm mobility, by the duration of infertility and by the total number of embryos transferred., Conclusion: the ICSI represents currently the treatment of choice of couple having extreme spermatic changes. The results of our study are comparable to those reported in the literature. The women age and the number of 4 cells embryos transferred are the main factors predicting of the ICSI prognostic.

One hundred thirty-five in 1,000 (13.5%) Tunisian male infertile patients with nonobstructive spermatogenesis disorders were found to have chromosomal abnormalities.

In the last few years, many tests were developed to study the fertilizing properties of the spermatozoa. However none of them was useful to obtain a prognostic factor. Indeed, the integrity of the spermatic DNA is also necessary to a successful fertilization for obtaining a pregnancy. DNA integrity could be evaluated by the measurement of the level of DNA methylation. Indeed, in the mammals, the methylation of the ADN is involved in diverse processes amongst them the regulation of the genome expression during the embryonic development. The objective of this study is to evaluate the impact of the level of methylation of the spermatic DNA in the success of in vitro fertilization (IVF), in terms of rate of fertilization, quality of the embryos and rate of pregnancy. The immunostaining of the 5-methylecytosine, then the quantification by image analysis or with flow cytometry, allowed an objective evaluation of the level of total methylation of spermatic DNA. Our data show that the level of DNA methylation influences neither the fertilization rate nor the embryos quality. On the other hand, the rate of pregnancy is decreased if the total level of DNA methylation is lower than a threshold value. The level of spermatic DNA methylation represents a new parameter of spermatic maturation.

Objective: To determine the relationship between sperm DNA methylation level and sperm characteristics and pregnancy rates., Design: Prospective study. Quantitation by image analysis of DNA methylation in sperm nucleus., Setting: Department of Reproduction Biology, Edouard Herriot Hospital, Lyon, France., Patient(s): Infertile couples undergoing IVF-ET., Intervention(s): The immunostaining of 5 methyl-cytosine was performed on the spare sperm suspension that was used for an assisted reproduction technology procedure., Main Outcome Measure(s): Sperm characteristics according to World Health Organization criteria, sperm motility parameters with computer-assisted semen analysis, sperm DNA methylation level, and heterogeneity index (HI)., Result(s): Sperm DNA methylation level and HI are correlated with sperm DNA characteristics. HI is negatively correlated with fertilization rate; sperm DNA methylation level is correlated with pregnancy rate., Conclusion(s): The DNA methylation level in human spermatozoa could be a new approach to evaluating the ability of spermatozoa to fertilize and lead to normal embryo development.