The redox status of human spermatozoa was found to have a profound influence on the fertilizing potential of these cells in association with qualitative and quantitative changes in the patterns of tyrosine phosphorylation. In general, oxidizing conditions enhanced tyrosine phosphorylation and stimulated sperm function, whereas reducing conditions had the opposite effect. Unstimulated human sper...

Human oocyte development was evaluated after a reduced time exposure to spermatozoa in vitro. A total of 119 patients were assigned to two study groups in a randomized prospective study in which each patient's oocytes were exposed to spermatozoa for either 1 h (group 1 - 58 patients) or the standard 16 h incubation period (group 2 - 61 patients). The fertilization rate obtained in group 1 was h...

BACKGROUND Mycoplasma genitalium causes urogenital diseases in men and women and is presumed to be sexually transmitted. We wanted to investigate whether spermatozoa could serve as vectors for M.genitalium in order to cause upper genital diseases in women. METHODS By use of Nomarski light microscopy and transmission X-ray microscopy, the attachment of M.genitalium to spermatozoa was studied. ...

background: stimulatory therapy with gonadotrpins is an effective treatment to induce spermatogenesis in men with idiopathic hypogonadotroptic hypogonadism (ihh). the aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of human chorionic gonadotropin / human menopausal gonadotropin on hypogonadotropic infertile men. materials and methods: this study included fifty-six azoospermic infertile men wi...

Azoospermia is defined as the complete absence of spermatozoa upon examination of the semen [including capillary tube centrifugation (CTC), strictly confirmed by the absence of spermatozoa issued in urine after ejaculation]. The presence of rare spermatozoa (<500.000/ml) in seminal fluid after centrifugation is called "cryptozoospermia". The complete absence of spermatozoa should be confirmed w...

Human spermatozoa encounter an osmotic decrease from 330 to 290 mOsm l-1 when passing through the female reproductive tract. We aimed to evaluate the role of chloride channels in volume regulation and sperm motility from patients with asthenozoospermia. Spermatozoa were purified using Percoll density gradients. Sperm volume was measured as the forward scatter signal using flow cytometry. Sperm ...

Cholesterol is a main lipid component of sperm cell that is essential for sperm membrane fluidity, capacitation, and acrosomal reaction. Recent data obtained in bovine sperm showed that sperm capacitation is associated to the formation of oxysterols, oxidized products of cholesterol. The aim of this study was to profile oxysterol content in human semen, and to investigate their potential role i...

Background Stimulatory therapy with gonadotrpins is an effective treatment to induce spermatogenesis in men with idiopathic hypogonadotroptic hypogonadism (IHH). The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of human chorionic gonadotropin / human menopausal gonadotropin on hypogonadotropic infertile men. MaterialsAndMethods This study included fifty-six azoospermic infertile men with I...

The serine/threonine phosphatase (PP1) isoform PP1γ2, predominantly expressed in the testis, is a key enzyme in spermatozoa. High PP1γ2 catalytic activity holds motility in check in immature spermatozoa. Inhibition of PP1γ2 causes motility initiation in immature spermatozoa and motility stimulation and changes in flagellar beat parameters in mature spermatozoa. The PP1γ2 isoform is present in a...