Analysis of follicular fluid and serum markers of oxidative stress in women with infertility related to endometriosis

Abstract

To study the levels of four markers of oxidative stress in follicular fluid (FF) and plasma of patients with infertility related to endometriosis and controls. Experimental study. University-affiliated hospital and infertility center. Ninety-one infertile women were included in the study (23 infertile women with endometriosis and 68 controls including infertile women due to tubal factor, male factor, or healthy egg donors). Blood was obtained at the time of egg retrieval, and FF from the mature follicles of each ovary was centrifuged and frozen until analysis. Vitamin C and E, malondialdehyde, and superoxide dismutase concentrations in plasma and follicular fluid. Women with endometriosis showed a lower vitamin C concentration in FF (12.7 ± 5.9 vs. 9.7 ± 6.9 μg/mL) and lower superoxide dismutase concentration in plasma (0.9 ± 1.4 vs. 0.5 ± 0.7 U/mL) compared with controls. Vitamin E plasma levels were significantly higher in women with endometriosis (8.1 ± 3.8 vs. 5.2 ± 3.2 μg/mL). A nonsignificant trend toward a lower plasma concentration of malondialdehyde was found in women with endometriosis. These findings suggest a lower antioxidant capacity in infertile women with endometriosis. Although a certain level of reactive oxygen species is required under physiological conditions, an altered balance between pro-oxidant and antioxidant activities may have an impact on folliculogenesis and adequate embryo development.