Semen quality and infertility status can be identified through measures of oxidation-reduction potential

Abstract

Standard analyses for evaluating semen quality require technical expertise and are interpretive in nature. Oxidative stress (OS) alters many of the semen parameters; thus, a measure of OS could be an indicator of semen quality. Static oxidation-reduction potential (sORP) is a universal measure of OS traditionally used in environmental applications but is increasingly used in biomedical studies. sORP was measured to determine how well it associates with semen quality and if it differentiates semen from infertile patients and fertile donors. All study participants (Infertile, n = 365 and Fertile, n = 50) underwent standard semen analyses, and sORP was measured in unprocessed semen. In infertile patients, sORP increased with decreased total sperm number, motility and morphology. sORP values were higher in samples with abnormal quality (low number, motility and/or normal morphology) compared with those of normal quality. Infertile patients had higher sOPR values compared to fertile donors. A sORP cut-off value of 1.38 mV/10 sperm/ml can differentiate normal from abnormal semen samples, while a cut-off value of 1.41 mV/10 sperm/ml, can differentiate between infertile and fertile semen samples. In conclusion, sORP provides a quick and unbiased indicator of semen quality that can be a beneficial addition to semen analysis to determine semen quality and fertility status.

A Novel Approach to Improving the Reliability of Manual Semen Analysis: A Paradigm Shift in the Workup of Infertile Men

“…These findings were corroborated by a study we published the following year in which a static ORP cut-off value of 1.38 mV/10 6 sperm/mL was determined via ROC curve analysis to differentiate normal from abnormal semen samples within a sample of 365 infertile men (Fig. 6), suggesting that ORP could be a valuable addition to SA as a useful marker of semen quality [56].…”

“…*Significant at p<0.05. Adapted from the article of Arafa et al (Andrologia 2018;50)[56] with original copyright holder's permission.…”

Oxidation-reduction potential as a new marker for oxidative stress: Correlation to male infertility

“…It is specifically calibrated to detect human sperm at 0.1–400 mV. Requiring only 30 µL of sample volume and less than 5 minutes for the entire procedure, the MiOXSYS System yields an ORP value with a high sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy [ 53 54 55 56 57 58 ]. Fresh or frozen semen and seminal plasma can be also be evaluated [ 59 ].…”

“…sORP provides a composite measure of available oxidants and reductants whereas cORP denotes the amount of accessible reductants to combat OS. Due to more promising data, sORP became the topic of interest and was mostly referred to as “ORP” in later studies [ 54 55 56 58 ]. All studies were conducted with at least a power of 80% with statistical significance set at p<0.05.…”

Correlation of oxidation–reduction potential with hormones, semen parameters and testicular volume

“…Various studies have investigated the potential diagnostic role of ORP measurement in male infertility assessment (Agarwal, Sharma, Roychoudhury, Plessis, & Sabanegh, ; Arafa et al, ; Roychoudhury et al, ). Studies on infertile males have shown that ORP negatively correlates with semen parameters, including sperm concentration and motility (Agarwal, Roychoudhury et al, ; Agarwal & Wang, ).…”