E. Delamirande et C. Gagnon, HUMAN SPERM HYPERACTIVATION IN WHOLE SEMEN AND ITS ASSOCIATION WITH LOW SUPEROXIDE SCAVENGING CAPACITY IN SEMINAL PLASMA, Fertility and sterility, 59(6), 1993, pp. 1291-1295
Objectives: To characterize the very vigorous type of motility observe
d in the semen of some infertile men and to compare the superoxide ani
on scavenging capacity of the seminal plasma from these men and that f
rom normal men. Subjects: Patients consulting for infertility related
to sperm motility problems and men presenting as sperm donors. Methods
: Motility patterns and measurements of sperm motility parameters were
evaluated by computer-assisted digital image analysis system. The sup
eroxide anion scavenging capacity of seminal plasma was measured by in
hibition of nitroblue tetrazolium reduction due to the superoxide anio
n generated by the combination xanthine plus xanthine oxidase. Results
: Spermatozoa from 9 of 68 semen samples with normal sperm concentrati
on, morphology, and percentage of motility showed the typical motility
patterns observed during hyperactivation (HA) and a significant level
of HA (16% +/- 3%) as compared with those in semen (2.3% +/- 0.3%) fr
om fertile volunteers. The superoxide anion scavenging capacity of the
seminal plasma from men with sperm HA was 37% lower than that of cont
rol seminal plasma. Conclusions: Sperm HA can occur in whole semen and
is associated with a low superoxide anion scavenging capacity in semi
nal plasma. It could be one of the causes for idiopathic infertility.