title: Functional proteomic analysis of seminal plasma proteins in men with various semen parameters.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Alterations at the molecular level in spermatozoa and seminal plasma can affect male fertility. The objective of this study was to determine if analysis of differential expression of proteins in varying semen parameters can serve as potential biomarkers for male infertility.
  
  
  METHODS
  The differential expression of proteins in the seminal plasma of men based on sperm count and morphology were examined utilizing proteomic tools. Subjects were categorized based on sperm concentration and morphology into 4 groups: 1) normal sperm count and normal morphology (NN); 2) normal sperm count and abnormal morphology (NA); 3) oligozoospermia and normal morphology (ON); and 4) oligozoospermia and abnormal morphology (OA). Proteomic analysis was performed by LC-MS/MS followed by functional bioinformatics analysis. Protein distribution in the NA, ON and OA groups was compared with that of the NN group.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty proteins were differentially expressed among the 4 groups. Among the unique proteins identified, 3 were downregulated in the NA group, 1 in the ON group and 1 in the OA group while 2 were upregulated in the ON and OA groups. The functional analysis 1) identified biological regulation as the major processes affected and 2) determined that most of the identified proteins were of extracellular origin.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We have identified proteins that are over-or underexpressed in the seminal plasma of men with poor sperm quality. The distinct presence of some of the proteins may serve as potential biomarkers and provide insight into the mechanistic role played by these proteins in male infertility. Further studies using Western Blot analysis are required to validate these findings.
authors.affiliation: Center for Reproductive Medicine, Glickman Urological and Kidney Institute, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA.
authors.forename: Rakesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sharma
authors.forename: Ashok
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Agarwal
authors.forename: Gayatri
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mohanty
authors.forename: Rachel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Jesudasan
authors.forename: Banu
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gopalan
authors.forename: Belinda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Willard
authors.forename: Satya P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Yadav
authors.forename: Edmund
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Sabanegh
mesh_terms: D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D002853:Chromatography, Liquid; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000378:metabolism; D008297:Male; D009845:Oligospermia / Q000378:metabolism; D020543:Proteome / Q000032:analysis*; D040901:Proteomics / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012661:Semen / Q000378:metabolism*; D029589:Seminal Plasma Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D013076:Sperm Count; D053719:Tandem Mass Spectrometry
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D020543:Proteome; D029589:Seminal Plasma Proteins