VAR2CSA, a member of the Plasmodium falciparum erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1) family, is a leading candidate for use in vaccines to protect first-time mothers from placental malaria (PM). VAR2CSA, which is comprised of a series of six Duffy binding-like (DBL) domains, binds chondroitin sulfate A (CSA) on placental syncytiotrophoblast. Several recombinant DBL domains have been shown to ...

DNA repair has long been considered impossible in human spermatozoa due to the high level of DNA compaction observed in these cells. However, detailed examination of the base excision repair pathway in human spermatozoa has revealed the presence of an enzyme critical to this pathway, OGG1. This glycosylase was associated with the sperm nucleus and mitochondria and could actively excise 8-hydrdo...

Sperm DNA Fragmentation has been extensively studied for more than a decade. In the 1940s the uniqueness of the spermatozoa protein complex which stabilizes the DNA was discovered. In the fifties and sixties, the association between unstable chromatin structure and subfertility was investigated. In the seventies, the impact of induced DNA damage was investigated. In the 1980s the concept of spe...

We have approached the problem of refrigerated storage of epididymal sperm samples from red deer by comparing three options: storing the genital (testicles within the scrotum), diluting the semen in extender or diluting the semen in extender supplemented with an anti-oxidant. Twenty-nine pairs of testes were collected. Spermatozoa from one of each of the pairs were immediately recovered, and di...

Background: Sperm DNA is susceptible to oxidative damage due to intrinsic and extrinsic factors which cause oxidative stress and due to limited DNA damage detection and repair mechanism. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are the chief cause of sperm DNA damage. So, this study was planned to assess oxidative stress levels and correlate with sperm DNA damage. Material and Method: The study included 3...

Objective: To investigate the effect of sperm DNA fragmentation index (DFI) on the clinical outcomes of in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Methods: Infertile couples were prospectively recruited in the Reproductive Center in Jiaozuo Maternal and Child Care Service Centre in Henan, China, from July 2015 to December 2016. All the recruited 228 infertile coup...

Infertility is a common yet complex problem affecting approximately 10-15% of couples attempting to conceive a baby. Especially, 40-50% of these factors are known as male-related disorders. Unlike female infertility, the cause of which is often easily identified, diagnosing male factors can be difficult. Male infertility is due to low sperm production, abnormal sperm function or blockages of sp...

Apoptosis in the testis has two putative roles during normal spermatogenesis; limitation of the germ cell population to numbers that can be supported by the Sertoli cells, and, possibly, selective depletion of meiotic and postmeiotic abnormal germ cells. We investigated the demographic and biological correlates of the pro-apoptotic marker Fas and the anti-apoptotic marker Bcl-xL in sperm cells ...

Infertility is a common yet complex problem affecting approximately 10-15% of couples attempting to conceive a baby. Especially, 40-50% of these factors are known as male-related disorders. Unlike female infertility, the cause of which is often easily identified, diagnosing male factors can be difficult. Male infertility is due to low sperm production, abnormal sperm function or blockages of sp...

Objective Imbalance between production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and total antioxidant capacity in testis, epididymis, and seminal fluid can eventually lead to subfertility and infertility. Abnormal chromatin packaging, and DNA fragmentation is considered as the main underlying causes. In this regard, we aimed to assess relationship between sperm parameters with DNA damage, protamine def...