Abstract
F2-isoprostanes (F2-IsoPs), byproducts of arachidonic acid oxidation, are one of the most reliable indices for assessing lipid peroxidation in vivo. This study aimed at evaluating the seminal F2-IsoP level in 147 patients with different reproductive conditions (varicocele, urogenital infection, idiopathic infertility) and 45 fertile controls to establish a cut-off value discriminating physiological and pathological ranges. Semen analyses were performed following WHO guidelines; F2-IsoP levels were measured by gas chromatography/negative-ion chemical ionization tandem mass spectrometry. Considering the whole group of patients, F2-IsoPs correlated negatively with normal morphology (r = −0.283, p < 0.01), viability (r = −0.245, p < 0.01), total progressive motility (r = −0.309, p < 0.01) and rapid motility (r = −0.535, p < 0.01). The area under the ROC curve for F2-IsoP levels was 0.839, indicating a good performance of the test; the Youden index showed a cut-off value of 29.96 ng/mL. Fertile men (except one) were distributed in the group of patients with F2-IsoP level < 29.96 ng/mL. Varicocele and urogenital infection groups showed the highest levels of F2-IsoPs in semen. For the first time, a cut-off for F2-IsoPs is identified in human semen. It allows discriminating different male infertility conditions by the semen F2-IsoP amounts, as an additional parameter for clinical evaluation.
Highlights
As a series of prostaglandin (PG)-like compounds, F2 -isoprostanes (F2 -IsoPs) are produced by the free radical-catalyzed peroxidation of the polyunsaturated arachidonic acid [1]
The infertile patients were categorized according to clinical diagnosis: group with genitourinary infection (n = 52), group with varicocele (n = 54), group with idiopathic infertility (n = 41)
Oxidative stress and inflammation have been suggested to be involved in different pathologies related to male fertility, including varicocele, leukocytospermia, sexually transmitted diseases and bacterial prostatitis [18]
Summary
As a series of prostaglandin (PG)-like compounds, F2 -isoprostanes (F2 -IsoPs) are produced by the free radical-catalyzed peroxidation of the polyunsaturated arachidonic acid [1]. Lipid peroxidation (LPO) is a critical effect of oxidative stress, which is a common biological condition in a wide range of human diseases such as neurological disorders, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and renal dysfunction [2]. Evidence suggested that the free form of 8-iso-PGF2α has significant limitations as a measure of oxidative damage since it is produced by enzymatic activity [6]. The evaluation of total 8-iso-PGF2α amounts, used in this research, is less affected by enzymatic metabolism because esterified arachidonic acid is not a substrate for prostaglandin-endoperoxide synthases [6]
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