Evaluation of the immunological cause of male infertility

Abstract

The presence of antisperm antibodies was considered as one of the main causes of male infertility. This study was conducted on 776 semen samples of the male partners of infertile couples in order to evaluate the immunological factor. The detection of antisperm antibodies was performed by means of the direct Mixed Antiglobulin Reaction (MAR) test. A positive test was found in 35 samples. Hence, the prevalence of immunological infertility in this study is 4.5% among the male partners of infertile couples. Further explorations were performed on men with positive results, in order to detect the presence of antibodies in the sera by means of the indirect MAR tests, and sperm immobilization tests for quantitating the cytotoxic activity of the antibodies. The indirect MAR tests showed that 97% of the antibodies were present in sera, whereas 5 1 YO of the samples were cytotoxic. Routine semen analysis indicated that around 60% of the semen samples with antisperm antibodies were good. Semen culture showed that positive results were detected in 40% of samples. Clinical evaluations revealed that the presence of antisperm antibodies may have been the cause of long-standing infertility, on average 5 years, and were not all primary. Evaluations of all clinical and laboratory findings indicated that unilateral testis obstruction and male accessory gland infection were the main pathologies found.

Ethnobotanical knowledge of medicinal plants used in the treatment of male infertility in southern Benin

“…Several reasons can lead to male infertility. It can be a hormonal imbalance (Khourdaji et al 2018), genetic anomaly (Plaseska-Karanfilska et al 2012), systemic disease (Mahmoud and Comhaire 2006), spermatogenic defect (Yan 2009), microbial infections (Emokpae et al 2009), immunological disorders (Hinting et al 2009), endocrine disruptors (Rehman et al 2018), environmental pollutants and lifestyle (Durairajanayagam 2018) (taking steroids for muscles, tobacco, alcohol, obesity, cellphone waves, and tight pants), drug factors etc.…”

Antisperm Antibodies Associated with Infertility: Properties and Encoding Genes of Target Antigens

“…Infertile subjects possessing ASAs are classified as having immunologic infertility (5–20). Although the ASAs can agglutinate and/or immobilize human sperm, a cause‐effect relationship to infertility has not been established (21–33). The major obstacle is the complexity of the ASA.…”

Ethnobotanical Kknowledge of Medicinal Plants Used in the Treatment of Male Infertility in Southern Benin

“…Moreover, the difference between the age groups and the degree of knowledge of respondents about the uses of medicinal plants for the treatment of this reproductive health problem was significant (P < 0.05). Older respondents (40-60) had more knowledge than less aged respondents (20)(21)(22)(23)(24)(25)(26)(27)(28)(29)(30)(31)(32)(33)(34)(35)(36)(37)(38)(39).…”

“…Several reasons can lead to male infertility. It can be a hormonal imbalance [14], genetic anomaly [15,16], systemic disease [17], spermatogenic defect [18], microbial infections [19], immunological disorders [20], endocrine disruptors [21], environmental pollutants and lifestyle [22] (taking steroids for muscles, tobacco, alcohol, obesity, cellphone waves, and tight pants), drug factors etc.…”