Testicular spermatozoa have statistically significantly lower DNA damage compared with ejaculated spermatozoa in patients with unsuccessful oral antioxidant treatment
Presented in part at the Annual Meeting of the American Urological Association, Anaheim, California, May 19–24, 2007.
Received 26 August 2008; received in revised form 9 October 2008; accepted 2 November 2008. published online 23 December 2008.
Objective
To compare DNA damage in ejaculated and testicular spermatozoa in patients with previously unsuccessful oral antioxidant treatment.
Design
Prospective clinical study.
Setting
University-affiliated teaching hospital.
Patient(s)
Twelve men with persistently high sperm DNA damage.
Intervention(s)
Evaluation of DNA damage of ejaculated and testicular spermatozoa by terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated deoxyuridine triphosphate nick end labeling (TUNEL) assay.
Main Outcome Measure(s)
The DNA damage of ejaculated spermatozoa compared with that of testicular spermatozoa, both samples collected on the day of intracytoplasmic sperm injection.
Result(s)
Ejaculated spermatozoa showed a threefold higher DNA damage when compared with testicular samples (39.7% ± 14.8 vs. 13.3% ± 7.3).
Conclusion(s)
Our results indicated that in patients with previously unsuccessful oral antioxidant treatment the retrieved testicular spermatozoa had a lower degree of DNA damage compared with ejaculated sperm collected on the same day.
aAndrology Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
bDivision of Urology, Department of Surgery, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
cLifeQuest Centre for Reproductive Medicine, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
dHannam Fertility Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Reprint requests: S.I. Moskovtsev, M.D., Ph.D., Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, 600 University Avenue, Room 6-303, Toronto, Ontario, M5G 1X5 Canada (FAX: 416-586-8589).
S.I.M. has nothing to disclose. K.J. is a paid consultant for Bayer. J.B.M.M. has nothing to disclose. K.I.C. has nothing to disclose. T.H. has nothing to disclose. K.C.L. is an employee of Bayer Canada.
ABSTRACT