The effect of cigarette smoking on human seminal parameters, sperm chromatin structure and condensation

Abstract

Considerable debate still exists regarding the effects of cigarette smoking on male fertility. This work aimed to explore effects of cigarette smoking on semen parameters and DNA fragmentation on 95 infertile patients who were divided into infertile male nonsmokers (45) and infertile male smokers (50). Smokers were subdivided according to a number of cigarettes smoked per day into mild (≤10), moderate (11-20) and heavy smokers (≥21). Semen analysis, sperm chromatin condensation integrity with aniline blue staining and sperm viability were compared between the study groups. A significant decrease has been shown in sperm count (p = .006), progressive motility (p = <.001), percentage of normal forms (p = <.001) and viability (p = .002) between infertile nonsmoker and infertile smokers. The percentage of abnormal sperm chromatin condensation was significantly higher in smokers compared to nonsmokers (p = <.001). A linear correlation was detected between the extent of cigarette smoking and the degree of worsening in progressive motility (p = .001), total motility (p < .001), viability (p < .001) and normal morphology (p < .001). These results indicate that cigarette smoking has detrimental effects on semen parameters. It negatively affected all conventional semen parameters in addition to sperm chromatin condensation and sperm viability. These abnormalities were also proportional to the number of cigarettes smoked per day and to the duration of smoking.

The impact of sociodemographic characteristics, lifestyle, work exposure and medical history on semen parameters in young Chinese men: A cross‐sectional study

“…A recent study showed that current male smoking and passive smoking in either partner was not associated with reduced fecundability (Wesselink et al, ). Mostafa et al () observed a dose‐dependent relationship between the amount and duration of smoking and its impact on semen parameters, while the seminal function was worse in heavy smokers and participants with long smoking duration. Similarly, the decline in semen quality was more pronounced in heavy (>20 cigarettes/day) and moderate (10–20 cigarettes/day) smokers compared to mild smokers (1–10 cigarettes/day) (Sharma et al, ).…”

Reactive oxygen species impact on sperm DNA and its role in male infertility

“…Infertile men can have in their seminal plasma, elevated levels of ROS and decreased antioxidant concentrations (Iwasaki & Gagnon, ; Mahfouz, Sharma, Sharma, Sabanegh, & Agarwal, ). Contributing factors to OS, either from an endogenous or exogenous source, include genitourinary infections, varicocele, metabolic syndromes, cigarette smoking, alcohol abuse, recreational drug abuse, ionising radiation, mobile phone use, psychological stress, strenuous exercise, spinal cord injury and environmental pollution (Adams, Galloway, Mondal, Esteves, & Mathews, ; Agarwal, Prabakaran, & Allamaneni, ; Bisht & Dada, ; Condorelli, Russo, Cologero, Morgia, & La Vignera, ; De Lamirande, Leduc, Iwasaki, Hassouna, & Gagnon, ; Harlev, Agarwal, Gunes, Shetty, & du Plessis, ; Mostafa et al., ; Sharma, Harlev, Agarwal, & Esteves, ).…”

Paternal Folate Status and Sperm Quality, Pregnancy Outcomes, and Epigenetics: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis

“…It is important to take confounders into consideration since previous studies have shown that a diversity of conditions and factors, such as smoking, alcohol use, age, and BMI also influence sperm parameters, which is in line with the induction of excessive oxidative stress. [ 26–29 ] Although, less research is performed on paternal influences on pregnancy outcomes, we assume that the same confounding factors should be considered.…”