Evaluation of reproductive potential after intracytoplasmic sperm injection of varied human semen tested by antiacrosomal antibodies

Abstract

To determine whether varied human spermatozoa, as detected with monoclonal antibodies against acrosomal proteins, have an influence on fertilization, transfer, pregnancy, and implantation rates when intracytoplasmic sperm injection is used. A retrospective study. A private IVF center and academic research laboratory. One thousand two hundred forty men participating in the intracytoplasmic sperm injection program. Sperm were divided into seven groups: oligozoospermia, oligoasthenozoospermia, and oligoasthenoteratozoospermia and fresh and frozen-thawed epididymal and fresh and frozen-thawed testicular sperm. Fertilization, transfer, pregnancy, and implantation rates were recorded in each category. Sperm were tested with antibodies for detection of the of the sperm acrosome. Fertilization, transfer, pregnancy and implantation rates, and percentage of acrosome-reacted cells. The fertilization rate and statistical evaluation showed differences between morphologically normal and pathological sperm and other groups. The freezing-thawing procedure had no influence on the fertilization of testicular sperm, but epididymal frozen-thawed sperm had a higher fertilization rate. Immunofluorescence proved decreasing sperm quality in all groups compared with the control group. This difference is not manifested in other parameters (transfer, pregnancy, implantation rates). The spermatozoa with varied semen characteristics and good quality, also detected with specific antibodies, gave the best fertilization rates. The paternal effect is not proved in other parameters.