title: Effect of paternal overweight or obesity on IVF treatment outcomes and the possible mechanisms involved.
abstract: Leukocyte telomere lengths (LTLs) are shorter in obese compared with normal weight people. However, it is not known whether sperm telomere length (STL) is related to obesity. The aim of the study was to evaluate the impact of men's body mass index (BMI) on STL, embryo quality, and clinical outcomes in couples undergoing IVF. In total, 651 couples were recruited, including 345 men with a normal BMI and 306 men with an overweight BMI (normal BMI group: 20-25 kg/m(2); overweight BMI group: >28 kg/m(2)). We found that couples with male's BMI over 28 kg/m(2) exhibited a significantly lower fertilization rate, good-quality embryo rate and clinical pregnancy rate compared to their normal BMI counterparts. The mean STL in the overweight BMI group was also significantly shorter than that of the normal BMI group. The results also showed that individuals with higher BMI had higher ROS (Reactive oxygen species) content and sperm DNA fragmentation rate when compared with normal BMI individuals. Mitochondrial activity was also lower in the overweight BMI group than in the normal BMI group. This is the first report to find that STL is shorter in overweight/obese men, which may account for their poorer treatment outcomes in IVF cycles.
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Qingling
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Feifei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Linli
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Nan
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Guidong
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: Reproductive Medical Center, First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, China.
authors.forename: Yingpu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D015992:Body Mass Index; D053938:DNA Fragmentation; D005260:Female; D005307:Fertilization in Vitro / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D050177:Overweight / Q000503:physiopathology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D018873:Pregnancy Rate; D013076:Sperm Count; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D059505:Telomere Homeostasis / Q000235:genetics; D016896:Treatment Outcome