. DNA damage is significantly related to age

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Sperm DNA Damage: Correlation To Severity Of Semen Abnormalities
Main Category: Fertility
Also Included In: Urology / Nephrology; Genetics
Article Date: 24 Nov 2008 - 1:00 PST

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA, USA (UroToday.com) - Evaluation of male fertility includes assessment of the standard semen parameters (SSP) and may include assessment of DNA damage. However, the relationship between DNA damage and SSP remains controversial. This study examined the the relationship of DNA damage to SSP in patients presenting for infertility evaluation.

The authors conducted an IRB approved retrospective review of semen samples from 2586 unselected non-azoospermic patients underwent computer-assisted semen analysis and flow cytometry based sperm DNA damage assessment expressed as the DNA Fragmentation Index (DFI). DFI was significantly negatively correlated to sperm concentration, motility, and normal morphology and positively correlated to age (P<0.001). DNA damage increased in relationship to the number of abnormalities in the SSP (P <0.001).

The authors concluded:

1. DNA damage is significantly related to standard parameters of semen analysis
2. DNA damage is significantly related to age
3. The degree of DNA damage increases with the number of abnormal parameters in a sample and is most severe in patients with oligo-astheno-teratospermia (OAT).

Editorial Comments:

The authors demonstrate the relationship between progressively more abnormal semen parameters and abnormal DFI. This is consistent with clinical observations and does not appear to demonstrate any incremental value to DFI assessment, in clinical practice, in the initial assessment of the infertile male.

Presented by S. I. Moskovtsev, J. Willis, and J. White, et al., at the 64th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine - November 8 - 12, 2008 - San Francisco, California

Reported by UroToday.com Contributing Editor Harris M. Nagler, MD

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Sperm DNA Damage Linked To Increased Risk of Pregnancy Loss after IVF and ICSI
November 25, 2008
Earlier studies have indicated that spermatozoa of infertile men possess considerably more sperm DNA damage than that of fertile men, which could adversely affect both natural reproduction and assisted reproduction technology (ART) outcomes. Since the use of ART to treat infertility has increased substantially from its introduction in the US, in 1981, there is a huge concern regarding the safety of using DNA-damaged spermatozoa. Now, a recent study published online in the journal, Human Reproduction, demonstrates that sperm DNA damage is associated with a significantly enhanced risk of pregnancy loss following in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intra cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI).