Effect of Interferon on Sperm Motility

Song, Yun Seob; Ku, Ja Hyeon; Seo, Byoung Wook; Kim, Min Eui; Park, Young Ho; Lee, Dong Hyeon; Lee, Moo Sang; Choi, Hyung Ki

Abstract

PURPOSE: The inflammation associated with leukocytospermia and infection has been implicated as a cause of infertility. Inflammatory cells cause subfertility through the effects of chemical mediators or cytokines. The seminal inflammatory cytokines are present in increased quantities if inflammatory white blood cells are present in semen and this increase under removed white blood cells may be related to sperm motility. Impairments in sperm motility reported that were induced by exposure of human sperm to recombinant interferon-gamma although this findings have been debated. We examined the change of parameters of sperm motility after administration of Interferon gamma(IFN-gamma) to sperm to evaluate the effect of cytokine on sperm motility.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
Semens from 20 healthy males were obtained. With swim up procedure, sperms with active motility were got and incubated in HAM`s F10 culture media for 24 hours. IFN-gamma 1000ng/ml, 10ng/ml and 0.1ng/ml were administered before incubation, respectively. Parameters of sperm motility such as curvilinear velocity(VCL), average path velocity(VAP), straight line velocity(VSL), lateral head displacement(ALH) and beat cross frequency(BCF) were recorded with Hamilton-Thorne computer semen analysis system before incubation, 5, 7 and 24 hour thereafter. They were expressed as percentage of the value of parameters before incubation.
RESULTS
There were statistically significant decreases of VCL, VAP, VSL, BCF in IFN-gamma 1000ng/ml administration after 24 hours.
CONCLUSIONS
The administration of IFN-gamma decrease the parameters of sperm motility and the increase of IFN-gamma was presumed to affect sperm motility. It is suggested that seminal IFN-gamma may affect sperm motility.