AIMTo evaluate the genetic instability of 11 fertile and 25 infertile men.

METHODSThe methodology of sister chromatid exchanges (SCEs) was applied to cultures of peripheral blood lymphocytes, and the levels of SCEss were analyzed as a quantitative index of genotoxicity, along with the values of the mitotic index (MI) and the proliferation rate index (PRI) as qualitative indices of cytotoxicity and cytostaticity, respectively. The genotoxic and antineoplastic agent, mitomycin C (MMC), and caffeine (CAF)--both well-known inhibitors of DNA repair mechanism--were used in an attempt to induce chromosomal instability in infertile men, so as to more easily detect the probable underlying damage on DNA.

RESULTSOur experiments illustrated that infertile men, compared with fertile ones, demonstrated a statistically significant DNA instability in peripheral blood lymphocytes after being exposed simultaneously to MMC and CAF.

CONCLUSIONThe current study showed vividly that there was genetic instability in infertile men which probably contributes to the development of an impaired reproductive capacity.

Adult ; Caffeine ; pharmacology ; Chromosome Aberrations ; drug effects ; DNA Repair ; drug effects ; Humans ; Infertility, Male ; genetics ; Lymphocytes ; cytology ; drug effects ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mitomycin ; pharmacology ; Mitotic Index ; Sister Chromatid Exchange ; drug effects

Pregnancies achieved by assisted reproduction technologies, particularly by intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) procedures, are susceptible to genetic risks inherent to the male population treated with ICSI and additional risks inherent to this innovative procedure. The documented, as well as the theoretical, risks are discussed in the present review study. These risks mainly represent that consequences of the genetic abnormalities underlying male subfertility (or infertility) and might become stimulators for the development of novel approaches and applications in the treatment of infertility. In addition, risks with a polygenic background appearing at birth as congenital anomalies and other theoretical or stochastic risks are discussed. Recent data suggest that assisted reproductive technology might also affect epigenetic characteristics of the male gamete, the female gamete, or might have an impact on early embryogenesis. It might be also associated with an increased risk for genomic imprinting abnormalities.
Animals ; Child, Preschool ; Chromosome Aberrations ; Chromosome Deletion ; Congenital Abnormalities ; genetics ; Epigenesis, Genetic ; Female ; Genomic Imprinting ; HIV Infections ; transmission ; Haploidy ; Humans ; Infant ; Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical ; Infertility, Male ; genetics ; Klinefelter Syndrome ; genetics ; Male ; Pregnancy ; Preimplantation Diagnosis ; Risk ; Sex Chromosome Aberrations ; Sperm Injections, Intracytoplasmic ; adverse effects ; Spermatogenesis ; genetics ; Translocation, Genetic ; genetics ; X Chromosome ; genetics ; XYY Karyotype ; genetics