The Role of Protamine in Male Fertility

Background: Approximately 40-50% of infertilities is related to males. Abnormal sperm chromatin structure is suggested as a significant cause of infertility. Protamines constitute a significant component of the sperm chromatin, and they play a vital role in the proper packaging of chromatin. Numerous studies have shown that protamine deficiency in sperm is associated with low sperm quality and infertility. Given the importance of protamine infertility, the purpose of this article is to investigate the content of protamine and its biological importance in male fertility. Materials and Methods: In this study, data and information collected on English-language articles from PubMed and MEDLINE databases. For Persian articles, Persian-language databases, including SID Scientific Database, IranMedex Medical Articles Database, IranDoc (Iran Scientific Information and Documents Research Institute), Magiran Publication Information and MedLib investigated. Results: Based on previous studies about protamine and its role in spermatogenesis, any disruption in protamine genes, including PRM1 and PMR2, can disrupt histone/protamine ratio, leading to abnormal spermatozoa. Conclusion: Most the previous studies approved any mutation in protamine genes correlates with infertility in men. These results can be a potential subject for future researches into infertility treatment in men

Effects of Y chromosome Microdeletions on Male Fertility

Background: In the process of human reproduction, spermatogenesis is one of the most important stages, which is controled by special genes on Y chromosome. Previous studies show that some infertile men have microdeletions on Y chromosome, which cause the reduction of sperm count. Three prominent spermatogenesis loci have been identified on the Y chromosome and entitled “azoospermia factors” (AZFa, b, and c). Hereby, this review article aimed to investigate the content of the Y chromosome microdeletions and their importance in male fertility. Methods: Data and information were collected on English-language articles from PubMed and MEDLINE databases. For Persian articles, Persian-language databases, including SID Scientific Database, IranMedex Medical Articles Database, IranDoc (Iran Scientific Information and Documents Research Institute), Magiran Publication Information, and MedLib were investigated. More than 50 articles on Y chromosome microdeletions and infertility published during 2000-2020 were studied. Results: Previous studies implicated that Y chromosome microdeletions in AZFa, AZFb, and AZFc regions are accompanied by defect in spermatogenesis, leading to oligo / azoospermia. Patients with AZFa and AZFb microdeletions present secretory azoospermia and do not have sperm in their seminiferous tubules. Complete AZFc deletion involves region b2/b4, which contains a total of 12 genes. Incomplete deletion of AZFc includes b1/b3, b2/b3 and gr/gr. The most common of which are gr/gr. In men with gr/gr deletion, sperm count and motility were lower than control group. Conclusion: Y chromosomal microdeletions emerged as the most frequent structural chromosome anomaly associated with the quantitative reduction of sperm. The development of assisted reproductive techniques (ART) like intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) and testicular sperm extraction (TESE) helps to bypass the natural barriers of fertilization

Prevalence of Primary Infertility in Iranian Men; a Systematic Review

Introduction: Primary infertility (PI) is one of the most common problems with an increasing incidence globally. Studies conducted in several parts of Iran have reported different a prevalence for this infertility type, so we investigated PI prevalence in the Iranian male population. Material and methods: This study was performed using the keywords "primary", "infertility", "prevalence", "men", "male", and "Iran" in international databases, including MedLine, Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, as well as domestic databases, including scientific information database (SID) and Magiran. We included original articles estimating PI prevalence and the cause of infertility in the general population and infertile Iranian couples referred to infertility centers. PI prevalence in men was not reported in any included studies, so using weighting based on sample size, the average PI prevalence in the studied couples and any male factors ("male" factors plus "both" factors) was estimated. Results: Thirty-two studies were obtained in the initial search. Ultimately, seven studies (five studies on infertile couples and two studies on the general population) were selected. The weighted average prevalence of PI was 81.26% (81.1-81.43) in referred infertile couples and 5.76% (5.63-5.89) in the general population. The overall estimate of PI prevalence in these groups was 46.35% (46.15-46.54) and 1.93% (1.89-1.97), respectively. Conclusion: Although the PI prevalence in different parts of Iran has been reported in the mentioned population, there was no domestic study on PI prevalence in men, so further studies to validate our results are needed

The effect of heracleum persicum (Golpar) oil and alcoholic extracts on sperm parameters and chromatin quality in mice

Background: Evaluating the significance and the effects of plant-derived drugs on laboratory animal’s fertility was recognized. There was antioxidant activity reported from Heracleum persicum (Golpar). Objective: Current study aims to study the antioxidant effect of Golpar extracts on sperm parameters and chromatin quality in mice. Materials and Methods: Eighteen adult male mice were divided to 3 groups (10 wk old, 35 gr weight): group1 received hydro alcoholic extract (1000 mg/kg, ip), group 2 received oil extract (200 mg/kg, ip) and group 3 serving as the sham control group that received sterile water. Finally, left cauda epididymis of each animal was dissected and sperm analysis was done accordingly. To asses sperm chromatin and DNA quality, we used aniline blue (AB), toluidine blue (TB), chromomycin A3 (CMA3) and acridine orange (AO) staining. Results: Progressive and non-progressive sperm motility were significantly increased in group 1 in comparison with group 3 (p=0.032). There was an increasing trend in progressive sperm motility and decreasing trend in non-progressive sperm motility in group 2 in comparison with group 3, but the differences were not significant (p=0.221 and p=0.144, respectively). According to the sperm chromatin quality, the results of TB and AO tests revealed significant differences (p=0.004, p=0.000, respectively) between those groups and showed that the extracts of Golpar cause DNA damage, but no differences can be observed between them in AB and CMA3 staining (p>0.05). Conclusion: The results showed that Heracleum persicum extracts may improve sperm motility. Also, it has harmful effects on sperm chromatin condensation and DNA integrity in mic

Human cumulus cell sensitivity to vitrification, an ultrastructural study

Abstract Cumulus cells (CCs) play an important role in the regulation of female gamete development, meiotic maturation, oocyte-sperm interaction, capacitation and acrosome reaction. However, their role in maintaining oocyte competence after vitrification is unclear as controversial data on their protecting action against oocyte cryoinjuries are available. Here we described the effects of vitrification on the ultrastructure of human CCs collected from women undergoing assisted reproductive technologies (ARTs). In total, 50 patches of CCs, sampled from high-quality human cumulus-oocyte complexes, were randomly allocated into two groups after patient informed consent: 1, fresh CCs (controls, n = 25); 2, vitrified CCs (n = 25). Samples were then prepared and observed by transmission electron microscopy. In fresh CCs, in which small cell clusters were visible, cell membranes were joined by focal gap junctions. Microvilli were rare and short. Nuclei, mitochondria, smooth endoplasmic reticulum (SER), Golgi apparatus and lipid droplets appeared well preserved; vacuoles were scarce. After vitrification, we observed two populations of CCs: light CCs, with a smooth appearance and few short microvilli; and dark CCs, with numerous and long microvilli. In both, most of the organelles appeared similar to those of fresh CCs. Lipid droplets were denser and more numerous, with respect to fresh CCs. They were mainly located in the peri-nuclear and sub-plasmalemmal regions. Numerous packed electron-negative vacuoles were visible. The vitrification procedure did not cause alterations in the fine structure of major organelles, except for an increased amount of lipid droplets and vacuoles. This specific sensitivity of human CCs to vitrification should be considered during ARTs