title: Sperm ubiquitination and DNA fragmentation in men with occupational exposure and varicocele.
abstract: Assessment of sperm ubiquitination and DNA fragmentation as sperm functional markers are proposed to complement routine semen analysis. This study focuses on the evaluation of these markers in infertile men with varicocele or exposed to occupational background. The results were compared with normozoospermic men. Semen parameters in both groups were lower than those in the control group. Ubiquitination median, as a marker for functionality of the ubiquitin-proteasome system, was also lower in both groups. The ubiquitination median showed a significant positive correlation with motility in both groups, while it showed only a negative correlation with sperm morphology in the varicocele group. DNA fragmentation showed a significant correlation with semen parameters, in total varicocele and also total exposure groups. In conclusion, significant difference of sperm ubiquitination between normal and study groups further validates that sperm ubiquitination as a potential molecular marker for sperm evaluation in addition to routine semen analysis in clinical laboratories.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Science and Research Branch, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hosseinpour
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Shahverdi
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Parivar
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Sedighi Gilani
authors.forename: M H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Nasr-Esfahani
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Salman Yazdi
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Sharbatoghli
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tavalaee
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chehrazi
mesh_terms: D053938:DNA Fragmentation; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D016273:Occupational Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects*; D055101:Semen Analysis; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000378:metabolism*; D054875:Ubiquitination; D014646:Varicocele / Q000503:physiopathology*
keywords: DNA fragmentation; sperm parameters; sperm ubiquitination; varicocele