Role of Oxidative Stress in Male Fertility and Idiopathic Infertility: Causes and Treatment

Infertility is defined as a couple’s inability to conceive after at least one year of regular unprotected intercourse. This condition has become a global health problem affecting approximately 187 million couples worldwide and about half of the cases are attributable to male factors. Oxidative stress is a common reason for several conditions associated with male infertility. High levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) impair sperm quality by decreasing motility and increasing the oxidation of DNA, of protein and of lipids. Multi-antioxidant supplementation is considered effective for male fertility parameters due to the synergistic effects of antioxidants. Most of them act by decreasing ROS concentration, thus improving sperm quality. In addition, other natural molecules, myo-inositol (MI) and d-chiro–inositol (DCI), ameliorate sperm quality. In sperm cells, MI is involved in many transduction mechanisms that regulate cytoplasmic calcium levels, capacitation and mitochondrial function. On the other hand, DCI is involved in the downregulation of steroidogenic enzyme aromatase, which produces testosterone. In this review, we analyze the processes involving oxidative stress in male fertility and the mechanisms of action of different molecules.

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Effects of abamectin exposure on male fertility in rats: Potential role of oxidative stress-mediated poly(ADP-ribose) polymerase (PARP) activation

Regulatory Toxicology and Pharmacology ◽

10.1016/j.yrtph.2011.09.001 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 61 (3) ◽

pp. 310-317 ◽

Cited By ~ 31

Author(s):

Ciler Celik-Ozenci ◽

Arda Tasatargil ◽

Merih Tekcan ◽

Leyla Sati ◽

Ece Gungor ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oxidative Stress ◽

Male Fertility ◽

Potential Role ◽

Parp Activation

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Role of oxidative stress and antioxidant supplementation in Male fertility

Current Molecular Medicine ◽

10.2174/1566524020999200831123553 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 20 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Zahra Beygi ◽

Sedighe Forouhari ◽

Elahe Mahmoudi ◽

Seyed Mohammad Gheibi Hayat ◽

Firoozeh Nourimand

Keyword(s):

Oxidative Stress ◽

Life Style ◽

Male Fertility ◽

Treatment Strategies ◽

Infertile Male ◽

Dna Damages ◽

Vitamins E And C ◽

Anti Oxidant ◽

Universal Health

: Nearly 15% of couples involve in infertility as a universal health issue. About 50% of infertility cases have been known to be associated with the male parameters. Oxidative stress (OS) represents an imbalance in the level of reactive ox-ygen species (ROS) and anti-oxidant. In fact, OS has been considered as one of the popular pathologies reported in about 50% of all infertile male. Therefore, the increased level of ROS may result in infertility via DNA damages or lipid peroxida-tion (LPO) as well as the enzymes inactivation and proteins oxidation in spermatozoa. Basically, OS results from the life-style variables. As the absence of antioxidant and the respective deficiencies in the semen cause OS, variations in the life-style and anti-oxidant regimes may be advantageous to treatment strategies for resolving such an issue. Actually, anti-oxidants like vitamins E and C, glutathione, coenzyme-Q10, carnitines, selenium, N-acetylcysteine, carotenoids, zinc, and pentoxifylline decline the OS-induced sperm damages.Therefore, the present review overviews the oxidative bio-chemistry associated with the sperm health and identifies which men would be most at risk of the oxidative infertility. Hence, the re-view would show the techniques provided to diagnose OS and diverse therapeutic options.

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Mitochondrial ferritin deficiency reduces male fertility in mice

Reproduction Fertility and Development ◽

10.1071/rd16348 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 29 (10) ◽

pp. 2005 ◽

Cited By ~ 6

Author(s):

Federica Maccarinelli ◽

Maria Regoni ◽

Fernando Carmona ◽

Maura Poli ◽

Esther G. Meyron-Holtz ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Oxidative Stress ◽

Male Fertility ◽

Gene Deletion ◽

Lower Number ◽

Fertility Rate ◽

Sperm Parameters ◽

Atp Content ◽

Stress Indices ◽

Set Up

Mitochondrial ferritin (FtMt) is a functional ferritin targeted to mitochondria that is highly expressed in the testis. To investigate the role of FtMt in the testis we set up a series of controlled matings between FtMt gene-deletion mice (FtMt–/–) with FtMt+/+ mice. We found that the number of newborns per litter and the fertility rate were strongly reduced for the FtMt–/– males, but not for the females, indicating that FtMt has an important role for male fertility. The morphology of the testis and of the spermatozoa of FtMt–/– mice was normal and we did not detect alterations in sperm parameters or in oxidative stress indices. In contrast, we observed that the cauda epididymides of FtMt–/– mice were significantly lighter and contained a lower number of spermatozoa compared with the controls. Also, the ATP content of FtMt–/– spermatozoa was found to be lower than that of FtMt+/+ spermatozoa. These data show that FtMt contributes to sperm epididymis maturation and to male fertility.

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Impact of oxidative stress on male fertility — A review

Acta Veterinaria Hungarica ◽

10.1556/avet.2011.034 ◽

2011 ◽

Vol 59 (4) ◽

pp. 465-484 ◽

Cited By ~ 51

Author(s):

Eva Tvrdá ◽

Zuzana Kňažická ◽

László Bárdos ◽

Péter Massányi ◽

Norbert Lukáč

Keyword(s):

Oxidative Stress ◽

Male Fertility ◽

Cell Signalling ◽

Cellular Damage ◽

Signalling Pathways ◽

Oxygen Species ◽

Oxygen Derived Free Radicals ◽

Enzymatic Systems

Oxidative stress is a state related to increased cellular damage caused by oxygen and oxygen-derived free radicals known as reactive oxygen species (ROS). It is a serious condition, as ROS and their metabolites attack DNA, lipids and proteins, alter enzymatic systems and cell signalling pathways, producing irreparable alterations, cell death and necrosis. While small amounts of ROS have been shown to be required for several functions of spermatozoa, their excessive levels can negatively impact the quality of spermatozoa and impair their overall fertilising capacity. These questions have recently attracted the attention of the scientific community; however, research aimed at exploring the role of oxidative stress and antioxidants associated with male fertility is still at its initial stages. This review summarises the current facts available in this field and intends to stimulate interest in basic and clinical research, especially in the development of effective methods for the diagnosis and therapy of semen damage caused by oxidative stress.

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