PROBLEM: Antisperm antibodies (ASA) are associated with male subfertility. However, results on sperm surface autoantibodies are controversial, the relationship between ASA and semen parameters (WHO, 2010) is unknown, and data on ASA and sperm kinematics are scarce. METHOD OF STUDY: A retrospective study carried out in men undergoing routine semen analysis (WHO 2010), ASA evaluation (direct SpermMAR(™) (IgG) test), and computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). RESULTS: A 2.6% and a 5.9% incidence of ASA-positive cases were found (cut-off 50% and 10%, respectively; n = 7492). ASA-positive samples had lower (P < 0.0001) sperm concentration, count, motility, and hypo-osmotic swelling (HOS) test score. HOS results did not correlate with sperm vitality in normozoospermic samples with high ASA levels. In unselected samples, ASA-positive samples (cut-off 50%) showed decreased sperm kinematics (VSL, VAP, LIN, ALH, STR, BCF, WOB), but in normozoospermic samples, ASA-positive and ASA-negative subgroups had similar CASA results. CONCLUSIONS: ASA evaluation is highly relevant in full semen assessment.
PROBLEM: Antisperm antibodies (ASA) are associated with male subfertility. However, results on sperm surface autoantibodies are controversial, the relationship between ASA and semen parameters (WHO, 2010) is unknown, and data on ASA and sperm kinematics are scarce. METHOD OF STUDY: A retrospective study carried out in men undergoing routine semen analysis (WHO 2010), ASA evaluation (direct SpermMAR(™) (IgG) test), and computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA). RESULTS: A 2.6% and a 5.9% incidence of ASA-positive cases were found (cut-off 50% and 10%, respectively; n = 7492). ASA-positive samples had lower (P < 0.0001) sperm concentration, count, motility, and hypo-osmotic swelling (HOS) test score. HOS results did not correlate with sperm vitality in normozoospermic samples with high ASA levels. In unselected samples, ASA-positive samples (cut-off 50%) showed decreased sperm kinematics (VSL, VAP, LIN, ALH, STR, BCF, WOB), but in normozoospermic samples, ASA-positive and ASA-negative subgroups had similar CASA results. CONCLUSIONS:ASA evaluation is highly relevant in full semen assessment.
Authors: Sajal Gupta; Rakesh Sharma; Ashok Agarwal; Florence Boitrelle; Renata Finelli; Ala'a Farkouh; Ramadan Saleh; Taha Abo-Almagd Abdel-Meguid; Murat Gül; Birute Zilaitiene; Edmund Ko; Amarnath Rambhatla; Armand Zini; Kristian Leisegang; Shinnosuke Kuroda; Ralf Henkel; Rossella Cannarella; Ayad Palani; Chak-Lam Cho; Christopher C K Ho; Daniel Suslik Zylbersztejn; Edoardo Pescatori; Eric Chung; Fotios Dimitriadis; Germar-Michael Pinggera; Gian Maria Busetto; Giancarlo Balercia; Gianmaria Salvio; Giovanni M Colpi; Gökhan Çeker; Hisanori Taniguchi; Hussein Kandil; Hyun Jun Park; Israel Maldonado Rosas; Jean de la Rosette; Joao Paulo Greco Cardoso; Jonathan Ramsay; Juan Alvarez; Juan Manuel Corral Molina; Kareim Khalafalla; Kasonde Bowa; Kelton Tremellen; Evangelini Evgeni; Lucia Rocco; Marcelo Gabriel Rodriguez Peña; Marjan Sabbaghian; Marlon Martinez; Mohamed Arafa; Mohamed S Al-Marhoon; Nicholas Tadros; Nicolas Garrido; Osvaldo Rajmil; Pallav Sengupta; Paraskevi Vogiatzi; Parviz Kavoussi; Ponco Birowo; Raghavender Kosgi; Saleem Bani-Hani; Sava Micic; Sijo Parekattil; Sunil Jindal; Tan V Le; Taymour Mostafa; Tuncay Toprak; Yoshiharu Morimoto; Vineet Malhotra; Azin Aghamajidi; Damayanthi Durairajanayagam; Rupin Shah Journal: World J Mens Health Date: 2022-01-01 Impact factor: 6.494