Genetic contribution to male infertility.

Worldwide, of couples trying for a child, 2-7% fail to conceive. Extensive screening programmes of men attending infertility clinics show that chromosomal and gene disorders make a significant contribution to spermatogenic impairment. It appears that an orderly genome is essential for normal germ cell development, since numerical and structural chromosome abnormalities are found in association with germ cell breakdown. The most recent research indicates that genes on the Y chromosome and autosomes are involved in spermatogenic control.