Utility and Predictive Value of Human Standard Semen Parameters and Sperm DNA Dispersion for Fertility Potential

Kamil Gill,Maciej Kurpisz,Joanna Jakubik,Michał Kups,Małgorzata Piasecka,Mariusz Lukaszuk,Aleksandra Rosiak-Gill,Monika Fraczek

doi:10.3390/ijerph16112004

Abstract

Because the assessment of sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) plays a key role in male fertility, our study was designed to find the relationships between SDF and standard semen parameters. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve showed that 18% SDF is a prognostic parameter for discriminating between men with normal and abnormal standard semen parameters (n = 667). Men with > 18% SDF had significantly lower quality semen, a higher prevalence of abnormal semen characteristics, and a higher odds ratio for abnormal semen parameters compared to men with ≤ 18% SDF. An ROC analysis provided predictive values for age and semen parameters to distinguish between men with SDF > 18% and men with ≤ 18% SDF. SDF was positively correlated with male age and teratozoospermia index but negatively with sperm concentration, total number of spermatozoa, sperm morphology, progressive motility, and vitality. Our study shows that 18% SDF has a predictive value for distinguishing between men with normal and abnormal semen characteristics. Men with >18% SDF have a higher risk for abnormal semen parameters, while age and obtained semen parameters have a predictive value for SDF. There is a relationship between SDF and conventional sperm characteristics, and thus, SDF can be incorporated into male fertility assessment.

Highlights

Up to 20% of couples trying to achieve pregnancy suffer from infertility [1,2,3].It is known that male factors are responsible for 20–70% of cases, and one-third of these cases may be caused by male factors alone [1,2,3,4,5]
sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) (AUC = 0.753) to distinguish between men with abnormal and normal standard semen parameters (Figures 1 and 2). Based on this receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, study groups were divided into two groups: men with > 18%
In our study, ROC analysis of SDF to distinguish between men with normal and abnormal standard semen parameters showed that the suggested optimal threshold was 18% SDF

Summary

Introduction

Up to 20% of couples trying to achieve pregnancy suffer from infertility [1,2,3].It is known that male factors are responsible for 20–70% of cases, and one-third of these cases may be caused by male factors alone [1,2,3,4,5]. Up to 20% of couples trying to achieve pregnancy suffer from infertility [1,2,3]. Male factors can influence the fertilization process and embryo gene expression and development. Male factors may be involved in idiopathic miscarriages, as well as autosomal dominant diseases and neurobehavioural disorders in offspring, especially in cases of advanced paternal age [6,7,8,9,10]. The assessment of male fertility potential is based on standard semen analysis. Evidence from recent years has shown that basic seminological analysis may not always be an optimal diagnostic tool, but it still remains the

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