title: Effect of reactive oxygen species produced by spermatozoa and leukocytes on sperm functions in non-leukocytospermic patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether there is an impact of different sources of reactive oxygen species (ROS) on sperm functions.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients at the Center for Dermatology and Andrology, Giessen, Germany.
  
  
  METHODS
  Semen collected from 63 randomly collected patients attending the IVF unit of the University of Giessen, Germany.
  
  
  METHODS
  Only patients with nonleukocytospermia were included in this study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sperm count and motility before and after sperm separation by swim-up, morphology, DNA fragmentation, and extrinsic (by leukocytes) and intrinsic ROS production (by spermatozoa) were evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Leukocytes correlated significantly with extrinsic ROS production (r = 0.576), but markedly less with intrinsic ROS production (r = 0.296). Sperm count, morphology, and motility in the ejaculate were markedly more affected by extrinsic than by intrinsic ROS. The DNA fragmentation was strongly positively correlated with intrinsic ROS production, whereas this correlation was weaker for extrinsic ROS production. No correlation was found between DNA fragmentation and the number of leukocytes, whereas the correlations with motility in the ejaculate and the motile sperm count after swim-up were highly significant. Moreover, significant differences were observed for extrinsic and intrinsic ROS production between groups of patients having a high (> or = 1 x 10(6)/mL) and a low number (<1 x 10(6)/mL) of leukocytes in the ejaculate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The origin of ROS seems to have an influence on the site of the damage. Because leukocyte counts <1 x 10(6)/mL caused a significant decrease of motility and DNA integrity, the threshold given by the World Health Organization (WHO) should be re-evaluated.
authors.affiliation: Center for Dermatology and Andrology, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany. ralf.henkel@med.uni-jena.de
authors.forename: Ralf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Henkel
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Kierspel
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Stalf
authors.forename: Claas
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mehnert
authors.forename: Roelof
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Menkveld
authors.forename: Hans-Rudolf
authors.initials: HR
authors.lastname: Tinneberg
authors.forename: Wolf-Bernhard
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Schill
authors.forename: Thinus F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Kruger
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D053938:DNA Fragmentation; D006801:Humans; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism*; D013076:Sperm Count; D013081:Sperm Motility / Q000502:physiology*; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species