title: Semen phthalate metabolites, spermatozoa apoptosis, and DNA damage: a cross-sectional study in China.
abstract: Toxicological studies have shown that phthalates, a class of widely used chemicals, can impair male reproductive function, but epidemiological evidence is inconsistent. This study aimed to investigate the associations of semen phthalate metabolites with sperm apoptosis and DNA damage in a Chinese population. We assessed sperm apoptosis markers with Annexin V/PI analysis and sperm DNA integrity with comet assay before measuring eight phthalate metabolites in semen by high-performance liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) among 463 men from Wuhan, China. We found a suggestive dose-response relationship between semen mono-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (MEHP) and an increased percentage of Annexin V+/PI- sperm (p for trend of <0.10). We also observed that semen monomethyl phthalate (MMP) and monoethyl phthalate (MEP) were associated with significant dose-related increases in tail length of the comet (both p for trend of <0.01). In conclusion, our data indicate that semen MEHP is associated with increased sperm apoptosis and that semen MMP and MEP are associated with increased sperm DNA damage in a Chinese population.
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Ling
authors: L
authors: You
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Yi-Xin
authors: YX
authors: Wang
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Qiang
authors: Q
authors: Zeng
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Min
authors: M
authors: Li
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Yue-Hui
authors: YH
authors: Huang
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Yu
authors: Y
authors: Hu
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Wen-Cheng
authors: WC
authors: Cao
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Ai-Lin
authors: AL
authors: Liu
authors: †Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, and ‡Key Laboratory of Environment and Health, Ministry of Education and Ministry of Environmental Protection, and State Key Laboratory of Environmental Health (Incubating), School of Public Health, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430030, People's Republic of China.
authors: Wen-Qing
authors: WQ
authors: Lu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D017209:Apoptosis; D002681:China; D020552:Comet Assay; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004249:DNA Damage; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010795:Phthalic Acids / Q000378:metabolism*; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012661:Semen / Q000378:metabolism*; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000166:cytology*
chemical_list: D010795:Phthalic Acids; C032279:phthalic acid