M. Huleihel et al., Expression of IL-12, IL-10, PGE2, sIL-2R and sIL-6R in seminal plasma of fertile and infertile men, ANDROLOGIA, 31(5), 1999, pp. 283-288
The involvement of cytokines and other immunoregulatory factors in male inf
ertility is still unclear. In the present study we compared the levels of I
L-12, IL-10, PGE2, sIL-2R and sIL-6R in the seminal plasma (SP) of fertile
and infertile men. Four groups were included: fertile donors (FERT), infert
ile men with azoospermia (AZOO), and infertile men with either oligoterato-
asthenoazoospermia (OTA), or OTA with genital infection (OTA-INF). Cytokine
s and cytokine-soluble receptors in semen were evaluated by specific ELISA
commercial kits. The levels of IL-12, sIL-2R and sIL-6R were similar in SP
of fertile and infertile men. The mean levels of IL-10 in the SP of FERT, O
TA and AZOO were 5.6 +/- 0.9, 4 +/- 2.8 and 8 +/- 3.5 pg ml(-1), respective
ly, and did not differ significantly. The mean level of IL-10 in SP from OT
A-INF (0.9 +/- 0.5 pg ml(-1)) was significantly lower than that for FERT (5
.6 +/- 1.9 pg ml(-1); P = 0.02) and AZOO (8.2 +/- 3.4 pg ml(-1); P = 0.05),
but not significanitly different from that for OTA (3.7 +/- 2.1 pg ml(-1)
). The mean SP level of PGE2 was significantly lower in SP of OTA-INF than
FERT (7.67 +/- 2.26 and 19.67 +/- 3.69 mu g ml(-1), respectively; P<0.02).
In conclusion, the seminal plasma from fertile and infertile men contained
similar levels of IL-12, sIL-2R and sIL-6R. However, the levels of IL-10 we
re significantly lower in SP from OTA-INF compared to FERT and AZOO. Our re
sults indicate that specific cytokines and their soluble receptors are invo
lved in the male reproductive system.