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The effect of alpha-chlorohydrin (alpha-CH) on rat epididymal spermatozoa was studied in vivo and in vitro. Alpha-CH was injected sc in doses of 5 and 20 mg daily for 16 days. The 20 mg dose resulted in diminished epididymal spermatozoal content (8 +/- 4 vs. 44 +/- 5 million, m +/- SE, n = 5) and motility (13 +/- 7 vs. 74 +/- 4%) as compared to saline injected-controls. Fertility rates were significantly reduced; control-100% (5/5), 5 mg - 25% (1/4), 20 mg - 0% (0/4). Alpha-CH was added to suspensions of spermatozoa in vitro and a level of 132 micrograms/ml depressed motility by 90% (P less than 0.0001) and O2 consumption by 40% (P less than 0.05). Intrauterine insemination of in vitro treated spermatozoa was performed in 61 pro-oestrous rats. Alpha-CH treated spermatozoa (from 5.3 to 26.400 micrograms/ml) were found to be completely infertile compared to untreated spermatozoa which showed a 63% fertility rate. There was almost complete absence of oocytes in the flushed ampullas of recipients of alpha-CH treated sperm, in the lowest dose which did not affect sperm motility. Thus, alpha-CH has direct effect upon spermatozoal function and also has a possible effect on the female reproductive tract.

In vitro penetration tests of human sperm into cervical mucus were introduced in order to study the interaction between sperm and cervical mucus. In the present study the correlation between sperm velocity and penetration value has been assessed. 197 semen samples were run in the in vitro penetration test using semen of different qualities and cervical mucus of good quality. No differences were found either between sperm velocity in cervical mucus (17.3 ± 0.9 µm/s) and in semen (19.9 ± 0.8 µm/s) or at different distances measured along the flat capillary tube (1,2 and 3 cm). A highly significant correlation was found between sperm velocity and penetration value rates (p < 0.0001, r = 0.9). Thus, sperm velocity in semen is a variable of great importance in the assessment of the quality of the ejaculate.

No abstract

The concentration of fructose in seminal plasma is an important variable that should be measured in the assessment of fertility status. The current method requires the boiling of diluted seminal plasma with resorcinol. The present study offers a new two-point spot test which uses the metol method. The results of analysis of 104 seminal plasma samples are in excellent correlation with the resorcinol method. The reported method is easy to use, inexpensive, and can be introduced into any laboratory.