REACTIVE OXYGEN SPECIES RELEASED BY ACTIVATED NEUTROPHILS, BUT NOT BYDEFICIENT SPERMATOZOA, ARE SUFFICIENT TO AFFECT NORMAL SPERM MOTILITY

Objectives: To determine whether reactive oxygen species (ROS) produce d by abnormal or deficient spermatozoa and polymorphonuclear leukocyte s (PMN, activated or not) can affect normal sperm motility. To determi ne what level of ROS is detrimental to spermatozoa. Subjects: Patients consulting the Infertility Clinic at the Royal Victoria Hospital and healthy volunteers. Methods: Normal spermatozoa (not producing ROS) we re incubated with ROS-producing spermatozoa or PMN (activated or not), and motility was analyzed using a computer-aided sperm analysis syste m. The proportion of ROS produced by spermatozoa and released extracel lularly was estimated by the decrease in the chemiluminescence observe d in the presence of catalase and superoxide dismutase. Results: There was no consistent effect on motility when ROS-producing and non-ROS-p roducing spermatozoa were mixed. This lack of effect could be due to t he relatively low level of ROS produced by spermatozoa as well as the fact that only a third of these ROS are released outside spermatozoa. To cause a low but significant decrease (15 +/- 4%) in sperm motility after a 5-hour incubation, the level of ROS imposed on spermatozoa mus t be equivalent to ROS released by 1 X 10(6) activated PMN/mL. Conclus ions: The production of ROS by deficient spermatozoa is low and of no consequence to the motility of normal spermatozoa present in the same sperm preparation. However, 1 X 10(6) activated PMN/mL, with a 1,000-f old higher ROS production, have detrimental effects on the motility of normal washed spermatozoa.