Objective To assess the relationship between dietary antioxidant intake and semen quality in young healthy males Design Cross-sectional study Setting University and college campuses in the Rochester, New York, area Patients 189 university-aged men Interventions None Main Outcome Measures Semen volume, total sperm count, concentration, motility, total motile count, and morphology Results Progressive motility was 6.5 (95% CI 0.6, 12.3) percentage units higher among men in the highest quartile of β-carotene intake compared to men in the lowest quartile. Similar results were observed for lutein intake. Lycopene intake was positively related to sperm morphology. The adjusted percentages (95% CI) of morphologically normal sperm in increasing quartiles of lycopene intake were 8.0 (6.7, 9.3), 7.7 (6.4, 9.0), 9.2 (7.9, 10.5) and 9.7 (8.4, 11.0). There was a non-linear relationship between vitamin C intake and sperm concentration, with men in the second quartile of intake having, on average, the highest sperm concentrations and men in the top quartile of intake having the lowest concentrations. Conclusions In a population of healthy young men, carotenoid intake was associated with higher sperm motility and, in the case of lycopene, better sperm morphology. Our data suggest that dietary carotenoids may have a positive impact on semen quality.

Background Prostate cancer has a propensity to invade and grow along nerves, a phenomenon called perineural invasion (PNI). Recent studies suggest that presence of PNI in prostate cancer has been associated with cancer aggressiveness. Methods We investigated the association between PNI and lethal prostate cancer in untreated and treated prostate cancer cohorts: the Swedish Watchful Waiting Cohort of 615 men who underwent watchful waiting, and the U.S. Health Professionals Follow-Up Study of 849 men treated with radical prostatectomy. One pathologist performed a standardized histopathologic review assessing PNI and Gleason grade. Patients were followed from diagnosis until metastasis or death. Results The prevalence of PNI was 7% and 44% in the untreated and treated cohorts, respectively. PNI was more common in high Gleason grade tumors in both cohorts. PNI was associated with enhanced tumor angiogenesis, but not tumor proliferation or apoptosis. In the Swedish study, PNI was associated with lethal prostate cancer (odds ratio, OR, 7.4, 95% confidence interval, CI, 3.6, 16.6; p<0.001). A positive, though not statistically significant, association persisted after adjustment for age, Gleason grade, and tumor volume (OR 1.9, 95% CI 0.8, 5.1; p=0.17). In the U.S. study, PNI predicted lethal prostate cancer independent of clinical factors (HR 1.8, 95% CI 1.0, 3.3; p=0.04). Conclusion These data support the hypothesis that perineural invasion creates a microenvironment that promotes cancer aggressiveness. Impact Our findings suggest that PNI should be a standardized component of histopathologic review, and highlights a mechanism underlying prostate cancer metastasis.

Abstract:The past decade has brought increased awareness of the potential adverse effects of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) in men with prostate cancer. Arguably the most important and controversial of these is the increased risk of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. Although multiple observational studies have shown that men treated with ADT are at increased risk of developing atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, our understanding of the biological mechanisms that might underlie this phenomenon is still evolving. In this review, we discuss some of the mechanisms that have been proposed to date, including ADTinduced metabolic changes that promote the development and progression of atherosclerotic plaques as well as direct local effects of hormonal factors on plaque growth, rupture and thrombosis.