title: Analysis of meiotic chromosomes in ejaculates of infertile patients with an increased number of immature germ cells in semen samples.
abstract: Seventy-one semen samples of 60 infertile patients with a suggested high number of immature germ cells were assigned for chromosomal analysis. The sperm probes of nine patients did not contain immature germ cell stages apart from spermatids. In 22 probands we could only find early prophase stages or not readable metaphase structures. Only 25 patients could be analysed cytogenetically. The semen sample of each patient contained degenerated germ cell structures associated with desynaptic and fragmented/pulverized metaphase cells. It follows that in each analysed probe we could detect anomalies which can be attributed to errors in the gametic development process and which are possibly connected with the existing teratozoospermia and oligozoospermia. The easy practicality for cytogenetic analysis represents the most important advantage of the described method. The analysis of immature germ cell stages in semen samples makes it possible to bypass or to reduce the incidence of tests biopsies for meiotic chromosome investigation.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Humangenetik, Universität, Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lange
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wilke
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Engel
mesh_terms: D002869:Chromosome Aberrations; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008540:Meiosis; D012661:Semen / Q000166:cytology*; D013076:Sperm Count; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000473:pathology*