ANTISPERM ANTIBODY ASSOCIATED WITH INFERTILITY IN MEN

Infertility is defined as inability of couples to achieve pregnancy following one year of unprotected intercourse.

Primary infertility

Secondary infertility

Male infertility may be due to:1.Decrease in the number of sperms2.Sperm being blocked from being

released3.Sperm that do not work properly

Other causes of male infertility…..?

Semen analysis…………………….male pathology.

Techniques for andrology for monitoring semen parameters, like sperm concentration, motility and morphology.

Computer assisted semen analysis (CASA)

CASA has categorized motility (micrometer/sec), of sperm into three classes as:

1. average path velocity (VAP)2.straight line velocity (VSL)3. curvilinear velocity (VCL)

Testicular pathology is divided in to subgroups as:

1.Teratozoospermia2.Oligozoospermia3.Asthenozoospermia4.Azoospermia5.Polyzoospermia

Antisperm antibodies are antibodies directed against the sperm.

Research began in 1899

Found systematically and in local secretion.

Impair the fertilizing ability of spermatozoa.

To compare the data of semen parameters from fertile and infertile subject categories.

To see the role of antisperm antibodies on sperm motility analyzed through CASA in fertile and fertile male subjects.

To determine the impact of ASA in our population and how it varies in different categories of infertile male subjects.

To determine whether seminal plasma ASA can be used as diagnostic tool in evaluating male fertility potential.

(n=10) fertile and (n=72) infertile male subjects.

The infertile patients were subdivided in to different categories :

(ATZS), (AZS), (OZS), (OAZS), (SA).

Semen volume, sperm count, CASA, motility parameters were measured according to WHO criteria.

Antisperm antibody enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit.

There was non-significant (P>0.05) difference in mean ± SEM semen volume among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects (ATZS, OZS, OAZS, SA).

However azoospermics (AZS) patients showed significant (P<0.01) decreased in semen volume as compared to fertile men.

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Figure 1: Mean ± SEM semen volume (ml) of fertile (n=10) and infertile (n=72) astheno-teratozoospermics (ATZS), azoospermics (AZS), oligoasthenozoospermics (OAZS) oligozoospermics (OZS) and sperm agglutination (SA) male subjects.

There was highly significant (P<0.001) decrease in sperm count OZS, OAZS as compared to fertile male subjects.

While patients with sperm agglutination showed highly significant (P<0.001) increase in sperm count when compared with fertile.

There were non significant difference (P>0.05) in mean ± SEM sperm count (mill/ml) among fertile and ATZS infertile male subjects.

Figure :Mean ± SEM sperm count (mill/ml) of fertile (n=10) and infertile (n=72) astheno-teratozoospermics (ATZS), azoospermics (AZS), oligoasthenozoospermics (OAZS), oligozoospermics (OZS) and sperm agglutination (SA) male subjects.

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There was significant (P<0.05) difference in mean ± SEM sperm motility (%) among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects.

Mean ± SEM sperm motility (%) in different classes of sperm motility (rapid progressive motile (%), slow progressive motile (%), and non motile (%) of fertile (n=10) and infertile (n=72) astheno-teratozoospermics (ATZS), azoospermics (AZS), oligoasthenozoospermics (OAZS), oligozoospermics (OZS) and sperm agglutination (SA) male subjects.

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Curvilinear velocity (VSL µm/sec) There was non-significant (P>0.05) difference in

mean ± SEM curvilinear velocity (VSL µm/sec among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects.

Straight line velocity (VSL µm/sec) There was significant (P<0.05) difference in mean

± SEM straight line velocity (VSL µm/sec) among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects.

Average path velocity (VAP µm/sec)

There was non significant (P>0.05) difference in mean ± SEM Average path velocity µm/sec (VAP µm/sec) among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects.

Wobble (WOB µm/sec) There was significant (P<0.05) difference in

mean ± SEM average path WOB among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects.

Amplitude of lateral head (ALH µm/sec) 

There was significant (P<0.05) difference in mean ± SEM amplitude of lateral head µm/sec (ALH) among fertile and different categories of infertile male subjects.

ASAs had showed highly significant (P<0.001) increased in concentration in sperm agglutination (SA) infertile male subjects and asthenoteratozoospermics (ATZS) patients showed significant (P<0.05) increased in ASAs as compared to oligozoospermics (OZS), oligoasthenozoospermics (OAZS) and azoospermics (AZS) infertile male subjects.

Mean ± SEM antisperm antibodies (U/ml) of fertile (n=10) and infertile (n=72) astheno-teratozoospermics (ATZS), azoospermics (AZS), oligoasthenozoospermics (OAZS), oligozoospermics (OZS) and sperm agglutination (SA) male subjects.

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Standard semen parameters have prognostic ability to evaluate the male fertility.

Seminal plasma antisperm antibodies (ASAs) showed significant increased in concentration in different categories of infertile male’s subjects.

Seminal plasma antisperm antibodies (ASAs) can be used as diagnostic tool for evaluation of male infertility especially in those infertile patients having sperm agglutination (SA) and asthenoteratozoospermics infertile patients (ATZS).