Magnetic-Activated Cell Sorting as a Method to Improve Necrozoospermia-Related Asthenozoospermic Samples

Gábor Máté, András Balló, László Márk, Péter Czétány, Árpád Szántó, Attila Török,.

Pannon Reproduction Institute, 8300 Tapolca, Hungary; Urology Clinic, University of Pécs Clinical Centre, 7621 Pécs, Hungary; National Human Reproduction Laboratory, University of Pécs, 7624 Pécs, Hungary; Department of Analytical Biochemistry, Institute of Biochemistry and Medical Chemistry, University of Pécs Medical School, 7624 Pécs, Hungary; MTA-PTE Human Reproduction Research Group, University of Pécs, 7624 Pécs, Hungary

Abstract: According to some statistics, absolute asthenozoospermia affects every 1 in 5000 men. Although this incidence rate does not appear to be too high, it is extremely important to address the phenomenon because it can drastically reduce the chances of pregnancy, even with assisted reproduction. The biggest problem with absolute asthenozoospermia is that it is difficult to distinguish between live and dead sperm cells, and fertilization with non-viable spermatozoa may contribute to the failure of an assisted reproduction cycle. Nowadays, DNA fragmentation (DF) is a crucial parameter of semen analysis, and in this paper, we provide evidence of the correlation between DF and vitality. For this purpose, the main semen parameters were investigated by a CASA system (concentration, motility, progressive motility, vitality and DF). In the necrozoospermic group (vitality < 58%), all the measured parameters showed significant differences compared to normal vitality. Concentration (30.1 M mL−1 vs. 13.6 M mL−1), motility (31.9% vs. 18.3%), and progressive motility (24.3% vs. 12.7%) were significantly decreased, while DF was significantly increased (17.4% vs. 23.7%). Based on the connection between vitality decrement and DF increment, DF lowering methods, such as magnetic-activated cell sorting, have been hypothesized as novel methods for the elimination of dead spermatozoa.

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MDPI – https://doi.org/10.3390/jcm11102914
Submission received: 15 April 2022 / Revised: 8 May 2022 / Accepted: 18 May 2022 / Published: 21 May 2022