title: Abnormal distribution of epididymal antigens on spermatozoa from infertile men.
abstract: An antiserum raised against human epididymal proteins associated with ejaculated sperm was used to test the hypothesis that the amount and/or localization of these antigens may be altered in men with infertility. With the use of immunofluorescence we found that in sperm from fertile donors 88.4% of the cells had the antigens localized over the acrosomal cap only and 1.3% had most of the antigens at extraacrosomal sites. Fifteen of the 26 infertile men (P1) studied had a similar relative distribution of antigens, but the remaining 11 patients (P2) had a 38-fold increase in cells with extraacrosomal localization of the antigens (40%, P less than 0.005). Using flow cytometry to quantitate immunofluorescence, content of antigen on sperm from patients from population P1 (680 +/- 60 V X 10(-4)) was not different from that of control (835 +/- 53 V X 10(-4], whereas it was significantly lower in sperm from patients from population P2 (554 +/- 64 V X 10(-4), P less than 0.005). Differences could not be correlated with parameters measured by routine semen analysis. Our results suggest a possible relationship between the decreased amount of epididymal antigens or their altered localization on sperm and the infertility of patients from population P2.
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000941:Antigens / Q000032:analysis*; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004822:Epididymis / Q000276:immunology*; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012661:Semen / Q000276:immunology; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000941:Antigens