Sperm DNA integrity is critically impacted by male age but does not influence outcomes of artificial insemination by husband in the Chinese infertile couples

Abstract

The sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA) is crucial for assessing male fertility. However, the predictive value of the SCSA parameters, including the DNA fragment indices (DFI) and the percentages of high DNA stainability (HDS), for outcomes of artificial insemination by husband (AIH) remains controversial. This study aims to evaluate the correlations between SCSA parameters and male aging as well as other routine semen parameters, and explore their prognostic powers on AIH outcomes of the Chinese infertile couples. A total of 809 AIH cycles were retrospectively analyzed. The results showed that DFI in the age groups < 35 years were significantly lower than that in the age groups ≥ 35 years (P < 0.001). Meanwhile, there was no statistical difference in HDS between the age groups (P = 0.063). DFI and HDS are negatively correlated with most routine semen parameters (all P < 0.05). The chi-square and generalized linear model tests indicated that neither DFI nor HDS influenced the clinical pregnancy rate of AIH. In summary, this study found that aging is a critical factor leading to increased sperm DFI but not HDS. DFI and HDS are negatively correlated with most semen parameters but do not significantly influence AIH outcomes.

Correlation analysis of age and MTHFR C677T polymorphism with sperm motility and sperm DNA integrity

“…DFI increased with age; the older the age, the higher the DFI. These results are consistent with those of other studies, that indicated age is a critical factor for male fertility (14)(15)(16)(17).…”

Paternal Age Matters: Association with Sperm Criteria’s- Spermatozoa DNA Integrity and Methylation Profile

“…We found that APA had an impact on DNA fragmentation. In fact, a detrimental effect of age has already been reported on DNA fragmentation; chromatin decondensation and even on sperm aneuploidy rates [37]. The statement suggests that advanced male age can have a negative influence on fertility potential, similar to the impact on women.…”

Investigating the impact of the sperm DNA fragmentation index of male partners from infertile couples on in vitro fertilization-embryo transfer outcomes

“…Whether sperm DFI could represent semen parameters and provide clinical diagnosis of patient's semen quality, needed investigations [13][14][15]. Studies showed increased sperm DFI in infertile males with abnormal semen parameters [16].…”