Prevalence of antisperm antibodies by SpermMARtest in subjects undergoing a routine sperm analysis for infertility

Sinisi, Antonio Agostino; Finizio, B. Di; Pasquali, Daniela; Scurini, C.; D'Apuzzo, Alfonso; Bellastella, Antonio

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2605.1993.tb01197.x

Cited by 66 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…However ASA may also be present in both fertile men and women [14,15]. This indicates that not all ASA cause infertility and their role in reproduction remains questionable.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Increased Level of Antibodies Cross-Reacting with Ves v 5 and CRISP-2 in MAR-Positive Patients

Brunner-Agten

Pavlovic

Müller

et al. 2012

Int Arch Allergy Immunol

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Background: Anti-sperm antibodies (ASA) have been described to be involved in immunological infertility. A possible antigen for ASA is the human cysteine-rich secretory protein 2 (CRISP-2), a sperm surface protein important in sperm-oocyte interaction. Furthermore, anti-CRISP-2 antibodies were shown to decrease fertility rates in vitro. Recently, we have reported cross-reacting antibodies recognizing CRISP-2 and antigen 5 from yellow jacket venom (Ves v 5) in human serum. Methods: Here, we investigated anti-Ves v 5 and CRISP-2 antibodies in sera from two groups of donors: MAR+ and MAR– patients. Results: A higher incidence of allergy against hymenoptera venom was found in MAR+ patients. Interestingly, affinity-purified ASA from MAR+ patients’ sera reacted against both Ves v 5 and CRISP-2, leading to sperm immobilization. Immunofluorescence analysis showed that ASA bound to the sperm surface, including the head part where CRISP-2 is localized. Conclusion: Taken together, these results showed a higher incidence of antibodies cross-reacting with Ves v 5 and CRISP-2 in MAR+ patients. This leads to the hypothesis that MAR+ patients may have a higher risk to develop wasp allergy.

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“…However ASA may also be present in both fertile men and women [14,15]. This indicates that not all ASA cause infertility and their role in reproduction remains questionable.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The incidence of ASA in infertile couples has been estimated between 6.2 and 30.3% [1,11,12,13,14]. However ASA may also be present in both fertile men and women [14,15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Increased Level of Antibodies Cross-Reacting with Ves v 5 and CRISP-2 in MAR-Positive Patients

Brunner-Agten

Pavlovic

Müller

et al. 2012

Int Arch Allergy Immunol

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“…, 1993; Bronson, 1999). However, these antibodies are also present in up to 19% of fertile men (Sinisi et al. , 1993; Heidenreich et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prostasome antigens as targets for sperm agglutinating antibodies demonstrated by 1‐D gel electrophoresis and immunoblottings

et al. 2004

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Many immunoinfertile men have sperm agglutinating antibodies that are directed against prostasome-derived antigens, but these antigens have not been defined so far. We selected serum samples with high ELISA titres against prostasomes from a group of immunoinfertile patients with sperm agglutinating antibodies and used the sera for immunoblottings on 1-D SDS-PAGE of prostasomes and sperm cells. The immunoblottings with individual antiprostasome antisera on 1-D SDS-PAGE of prostasomes, revealed three to 10 bands for each serum. Eighty-five per cent of the serum samples contained bands in the 70-75 kDa region and 80% of the samples contained bands in the 50-55 kDa region. Immunoblottings of extracted sperm cells, revealed one to six bands in the molecular weight range 25-82 kDa and two of the samples recognized two bands with molecular weights (50 and 43 kDa) similar to immunoblottings of prostasomes. The prostasomal antigens recognized by the high titre-antisera of immunoinfertile men were generally different from the sperm antigens recognized by the same sera. This suggests that prostasomes offer a new set of antigens available for research on male immunoinfertility and immunocontraception.

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“…However, ASAs are also present in approximately 1-2.5 % of fertile men and in 4 % of fertile women [6,7]. The presence of ASAs in the fertile population suggests that not all ASAs cause infertility [8][9][10]. These antibodies may be called "sperm-reactive" immunoglobulins since they do not contribute to the phenomenon of immune infertility.…”

Section: Antisperm Antibodies (Asas)mentioning

confidence: 93%

Role of the Immune System in Unexplained Male Infertility

Naz

Krause

2015

Unexplained Infertility

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The testis is an immunologically privileged organ. During puberty, when spermatogenesis starts, several "nonself" antigens develop on the later stages of germ cell formation (secondary pachytene stage onwards) that were not present when the immune system was developing a recognition of the "self" antigens in the fetal life. These "nonself" antigens/ sperm are sequestered from the immune attack by the development of the blood-testis barrier, which is primarily formed by tight Sertoli cell junctions. Besides the blood-testis barrier, there are additional mechanisms that contribute toward the uniquely protected environment of the testis [1]. When the blood-testis barrier is compromised by factors such as infection and/or inflammation, "nonself" antigens present on sperm could induce an autoimmune response. The mechanism involved in this may be equated to the "danger model" [2]. This model proposes that stressed and necrotic cells release "danger" signals such as heat shock proteins (HSP) that could trigger an autoimmune response. Indeed, HSP60 and HSP70 have been identified as autoantigens in the testis. Dendritic cells (DCs) are usually involved in the antigen presentation for activation of naive B and T cells. It is hypothesized that immature DCs, that are normally involved in maintaining immune privilege, mature under inflammatory pathological conditions and overcome the immune privilege/tolerance by the local activation and expansion of autoreactive T cells [1]. In the experimental autoimmune orchitis (EAO) of rats, the number of DCs in the testicular interstitium was found to increase during the course of EAO [3]. Several T cell subsets (CD4+ and CD8+ αβ T cells and γδ T cells) and natural killer (NK) cells exist in normal testicular interstitium. These cells are involved in the regulation of immune response and immune modulation in the testis [3]. Testicular mast cells (MCs) are found adjacent to the seminiferous tubules in the testis. Activated MCs also coincide with elevated numbers of several types of immune cells in the testis of infertile men and may, therefore, also be involved in the pathogenesis of testicular inflammatory process [4].Sertoli cells are one of the most interesting cell types, playing a role both in reproduction and immunological reaction in the testis. They act as nutritive cells for the developing spermatogenetic cell lineage and are responsible for the formation of blood-testis barrier. There is also increasing evidence of their role in immunoregulatory function in the testis [5]. Sertoli cells produce a number of immunoregulatory mediators including TGF-β, which is thought to play a major role in immunosuppression. The communication between germ and Sertoli cells appears to involve the same mechanism(s) that overlap with the inflammatory processes in infectious diseases. This link may partly explain how the immunologic spermatogenic disruption may be caused by inflammation and infection.Finally, the apoptosis of spermatogenic cells, which is an integral part of normal spermatogenesis,...

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Prevalence of antisperm antibodies by SpermMARtest in subjects undergoing a routine sperm analysis for infertility

Cited by 66 publications

References 18 publications

Increased Level of Antibodies Cross-Reacting with Ves v 5 and CRISP-2 in MAR-Positive Patients

Increased Level of Antibodies Cross-Reacting with Ves v 5 and CRISP-2 in MAR-Positive Patients

Prostasome antigens as targets for sperm agglutinating antibodies demonstrated by 1‐D gel electrophoresis and immunoblottings

Role of the Immune System in Unexplained Male Infertility

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