title: Relationship of sperm superoxide dismutase-like activity with other sperm-specific enzymes and experimentally induced lipid peroxidation in infertile men.
abstract: Superoxide dismutase-like activity (SOD-like), isoenzyme lactate dehydrogenase-C4 (LDH-C4) and NADH-diaphorase activities in spermatozoa have been investigated from 58 normozoospermic and 27 oligozoospermic men. Significantly higher SOD-like, LDH-C4 and diaphorase activities (P < 0.01, P < 0.005 and P < 0.0001, respectively) were detected in spermatozoa from oligozoospermic men, compared to the activities found in normozoospermic samples. SOD-like activity (mean +/- SE) in oligozoospermic samples amounted to 8.3 +/- 1.6 U 10(-8) spermatozoa, while in spermatozoa in normozoospermic men with a sperm concentration above 20 million of spermatozoa per ml amounted to 4.2 +/- 0.5 U 10(-8). There was a close correlation between the SOD-like activity and biochemical indicators of the presence of residual cytoplasm i.e. isoenzyme LDH-C4 and NADH-diaphorase (r = 0.53 and r = 0.66 in normozoospermic and r = 0.63 and r = 0.54 in oligozoospermic men, respectively). A positive relationship between SOD-like activity and experimentally-induced lipid peroxidation was detected in 54 infertile men (r = 0.30; P < 0.05). These findings suggest that a higher level of superoxide dismutase-like activity may reflect a defect in the development or maturation of spermatozoa and, thereby, a decreased fertility potential. Hence, determination of SOD-like activity may give information on the state of maturity of human spermatozoa, while its role in the antioxidative protection remains to be determined.
authors.affiliation: Vuk Vrhovac Institute, University Clinic for Diabetes, Endocrinology and Metabolic Diseases, Medical Faculty University of Zagreb, Croatia.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gavella
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Lipovac
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Vucić
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rocić
mesh_terms: D008058:Dihydrolipoamide Dehydrogenase / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000201:enzymology*; D007527:Isoenzymes; D007770:L-Lactate Dehydrogenase / Q000378:metabolism; D015227:Lipid Peroxidation; D008297:Male; D009845:Oligospermia / Q000201:enzymology; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000201:enzymology*; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D007527:Isoenzymes; D007770:L-Lactate Dehydrogenase; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase; D008058:Dihydrolipoamide Dehydrogenase