Cytochemical evaluation of sperm chromatin and DNA integrity in couples with unexplained recurrent spontaneous abortions

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine the possible relationship between sperm DNA integrity and chromatin packaging evaluated by cytochemical assays, traditional sperm parameters and recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA) of unknown origin. In this cohort study, 40 couples with a history of RSA and 40 couples with proven fertility were considered as case and control groups respectively. The semen samples of all husbands were analysed for sperm parameters and also sperm chromatin and DNA integrity assessed using cytochemical tests including aniline blue (AB), chromomycin A3 (CMA3), toluidine blue (TB), acridine orange (AOT) and nuclear chromatin stability assay. Among different sperm parameters, only slow motility was significantly different between the two groups. In sperm chromatin evaluations, there were significant differences between the two groups in all of the tests. In addition, the majority of semen samples in RSA patients exhibited upper percentages of abnormal spermatozoa than the cut-off values regarding different cytochemical assays. Our study showed that in the cases of RSA, slow motility had a significant reduction in comparison with controls and also spermatozoa of men from RSA group had less chromatin condensation and poorer DNA integrity than spermatozoa that obtained from fertile men with no history of RSA.

The impact of semen quality, occupational exposure to environmental factors and lifestyle on recurrent pregnancy loss

“…In contrast, some of the recent studies did not agree with this finding. Talebi et al [7] and Brahem et al [16] have provided evidence of an association between sperm motility and recurrent pregnancy loss. In addition, two studies carried out respectively by Absalan et al [8] and Gil-Villa et al [17] have also shown significantly lower sperm motility and normal morphology percentage in men with RPL history.…”

“…Currently, an increasing amount of studies have found an important role of sperm chromatin assessment employing different methods in RPL [17,19]. Talebi et al [7] used four different cytochemical tests including aniline blue (AB), chromomycin A3 (CMA3), toluidine blue (TB), acridine orange (AO), as well as nuclear chromatin stability assay, to analyze sperm. They concluded that there was significant correlation between DNA fragmentation and RPL, in agreement with our findings.…”

“…Semen parameters, such as sperm concentration, motility, viability, and morphology provide useful insight into the quality of semen. However, the role and the correct interpretation of these semen parameters remain unclear and their implications on RPL are debatable [6][7][8].…”

Abnormal Chromatin Condensation in Spermatozoa and Dna Fragmentation in Spermatozoa: Is There a Correlation?

“…Доказано, что аномальная (недостаточная) конденсация хроматина вызывает за-держку первого цикла клеточных делений и в дальней-шем повреждение эмбриона [23,24]. Эти повреждения могут приводить к неудачам вспомогательных репро-дуктивных технологий (ВРТ) [25], к потере беремен-ности на ранних сроках [26,27].…”

“…Эти данные позволяют сделать заключение, что нарушение конденсации хроматина может служить предиктивным показателем аномалий развития эмбри-она как in vivo, так и in vitro. Причем негативные по-следствия нарушения компактизации проявляются в раннее время после оплодотворения [77], приводя к раннему эмбриональному аресту [78] и спонтанным абортам [27,79].…”