These data indicate that alterations in fatty acids similar to those in cystic fibrosis-knockout mice are present in CFTR-expressing tissue from subjects with cystic fibrosis.

The high levels of ROS production and DNA damage observed in immature spermatozoa may be indicative of derangements in the regulation of spermiogenesis. DNA damage in mature spermatozoa may be the result of oxidative damage by ROS-producing immature spermatozoa during sperm migration from the seminiferous tubules to the epididymis.

The results of this study indicate that there is significant cell-to-cell variation in ROS production in subsets of spermatozoa at different stages of maturation and that oxidative damage of mature spermatozoa by ROS-producing immature spermatozoa during sperm migration from the seminiferous tubules to the epididymis may be an important cause of male infertility.

No abstract