CHANGES IN VARIOUS ANTIOXIDANT LEVELS IN HUMAN SEMINAL PLASMA RELATEDTO IMMUNOINFERTILITY

The present study was designed (1) to determine levels of antioxidant micronutrients in human seminal plasma, and (2) to evaluate the associ ation between the concentrations of these antioxidants and the antispe rm antibody titers in immunoinfertile men. To investigate this, the se minal plasma concentrations of antioxidant beta-carotene, lycopene, re tinol, and alpha-tocopherol were measured by high-pressure liquid chro matography in 37 men (22 fertile and 15 immunoinfertile), aged 27 to 3 5 years. The SIT (sperm-immobilization technique), TAT (tray-agglutina tion technique), and IBT (indirect immunobead test) were used to evalu ate the antisperm antibody titers. The levels of three antioxidants, n amely, beta-carotene, lycopene, and retinol, were significantly (p = . 01) decreased and the concentration of alpha-tocopherol was significan tly (p = .002) increased in seminal plasma of immunoinfertile men as c ompared to the levels in fertile men. There was a significant linear c orrelation between the antisperm antibody titer and beta-carotene leve l measured by IBT (r = .561, p = .002), whereas no significant correla tion was found with the other three seminal plasma antioxidants, namel y, lycopene, retinol, and alpha-tocopherol levels. These results indic ate, for perhaps the first time, the presence of antioxidants in local genital tract secretions of men. Modulation of their concentrations i n immunoinfertile men and their correlation with the antisperm antibod y titers strongly suggest the involvement of dietary antioxidants in m ale infertility, especially mediated through immunologic factors.