Fatty acids profiling reveals potential candidate markers of semen quality

Abstract

Previous reports showed altered fatty acid content in subjects with altered sperm parameters compared to normozoospermic individuals. However, these studies focused on a limited number of fatty acids, included a short number of subjects and results varied widely. We conducted a case-control study involving 155 patients allocated into four groups, including normozoospermia (n = 33), oligoasthenoteratozoospermia (n = 32), asthenozoospermia (n = 25), and varicocoele (n = 44). Fatty acid profiling, including 30 species, was analyzed by a validated gas chromatography (GC) method on the whole seminal fluid sample. Multinomial logistic regression modeling was used to identify the associations between fatty acids and the four groups. Specimens from 15 normozoospermic subjects were also analyzed for fatty acids content in the seminal plasma and spermatozoa to study the distribution in the two compartments. Fatty acids lipidome varied markedly between the four groups. Multinomial logistic regression modeling revealed that high levels of palmitic acid, behenic acid, oleic acid, and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) confer a low risk to stay out of the normozoospermic group. In the whole population, seminal fluid stearic acid was negatively correlated (r = -0.53), and DHA was positively correlated (r = 0.65) with sperm motility. Some fatty acids were preferentially accumulated in spermatozoa and the highest difference was observed for DHA, which was 6.2 times higher in spermatozoa than in seminal plasma. The results of this study highlight complete fatty acids profile in patients with different semen parameters. Given the easy-to-follow and rapid method of analysis, fatty acid profiling by GC method can be used for therapeutic purposes and to measure compliance in infertility trials using fatty acids supplements.

Effects of the addition of docosahexaenoic acid and ?-tocopherol on quality of equine spermatozoa stored at 5°C

“…EtOH 140 The addition of DHA to the environment promotes the incorporation of this PUFA in cell membranes (Wassall & Stillwell, 2009), changing its composition by increasing the proportion of n-3:n-6 (Towhidi & Parks, 2012), as well as PUFAs: saturated fatty acids (Nasiri et al, 2012). Such incorporation increases the fluidity of PM and can contribute to sperm motility (Connor et al, 1998), since the level of DHA in PM is positively correlated with this seminal parameter (Zerbinati et al, 2016). In frozen boar semen (Kaeoket, Sang-Urai, Thamniyom, Chanapiwat, & Techakumphu, 2010) and bull epididymal cryopreserved sperm (Losano et al, 2018), the addition of DHA resulted in increased motility and it was attributed to the incorporation of this PUFA to the PM, helping with the membrane phase transition from liquid crystal to gel state.…”

The influence of omega‐3 fatty acids on semen quality markers: a systematic PRISMA review

“…DHA is thought to play a role in regulation of membrane fluidity and spermatogenesis (Ollero et al ., ). Furthermore, sperm motility, morphology, and concentration are positively associated with levels of DHA (Gulaya et al ., ; Aksoy et al ., ; Khosrowbeygi et al ., ; Zerbinati et al ., ). However, the fatty acid composition of sperm lipid membranes is reported different in fertile and infertile men, as levels of EPA and DHA are considerably reduced in ejaculates from infertile men (Gulaya et al ., ).…”

“…One explanation could be that increased FA intake might be of benefit for semen quality markers due to the fact that spermatozoa membrane structures are essential for fertilization, as the membrane lipids are involved in acrosome reaction and sperm–oocyte fusion (Sanocka & Kurpisz, ) . DHA is found in very high levels in human ejaculates (Zalata et al ., ; Conquer et al ., ; Aksoy et al ., ; Khosrowbeygi et al ., ; Zerbinati et al ., ) and contributes to about 60% of total PUFAs in spermatozoa (Zalata et al ., ). DHA is thought to play a role in regulation of membrane fluidity and spermatogenesis (Ollero et al ., ).…”

Alpha‐ and gamma‐tocopherol levels in human semen and their potential functional implications

“…Spermatozoa are particularly susceptible to oxidative damage, given the massive presence of polyunsaturated fatty acids in their plasma membranes (Zerbinati et al, ).…”