TY - JOUR
T1 - Sperm very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids
T2 - relation to semen parameters and live birth outcome in a multicenter trial
AU - Gavrizi, Sarah Z.
AU - Hosseinzadeh, Pardis
AU - Brush, Richard Steven
AU - Tytanic, Madison
AU - Eckart, Erin
AU - Peck, Jennifer D.
AU - Craig, La Tasha B.
AU - Diamond, Michael P.
AU - Agbaga, Martin Paul
AU - Hansen, Karl R.
N1 - Funding Information:
Supported by grants from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) [U10HD39005, U10HD38992, U10HD27049, U10HD38998, U10HD055942, U10HD055944, U10HD055936, and U10HD055925].
Funding Information:
Supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences U54GM104938, the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine Alumni Association (COMAA) to KRH.
Funding Information:
Supported by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023
PY - 2023/5
Y1 - 2023/5
N2 - Objective: To determine whether the levels of sperm very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLC-PUFAs) are correlated with sperm parameters and the outcome of live birth after conventional therapy for unexplained infertility. Design: Cohort analysis of the Reproductive Medicine Network's Assessment of Multiple Intrauterine Gestations from Ovarian Stimulation randomized controlled trial. Setting: Multicenter randomized controlled trial. Patients: Male partners from 185 couples with unexplained infertility who provided baseline semen samples for analysis. Intervention: We determined the levels of VLC-PUFAs in total lipid isolated from sperm membranes using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry analyses. Main Outcome Measures: Sperm concentration, motility, morphology, total motile count (TMC), and live birth after standard treatment for unexplained infertility. Results: Total VLC-PUFA percentage was positively correlated with sperm concentration (Spearman's rank correlation (rs) 0.56, P<.0001), TMC (rs = 0.40, P<.0001), and morphology (rs = 0.26, P=.0005). After adjustment for male body mass index, age, and race, a one-standard-deviation increase in the percentage of total VLC-PUFA was associated with a 62% increase in the geometric mean (GM) of sperm concentration (GM Ratio: 1.62 [95% confidence intervals {CI}: 1.45, 1.82]) and a 43% increase in the geometric mean of TMC (GM Ratio: 1.43 [95% CI; 1.24, 1.63]). Although no evidence of association was observed for sperm motility, a positive relationship was also observed between the percentage of total VLC-PUFA and sperm morphology [adjusted incidence rate ratio (IRR) for one-standard-deviation increase in total VLC-PUFA: 1.18 (95% CI; 1.02, 1.36)]. After adjustment for female age and treatment group, the probability of a live birth outcome was 72% more likely among those in the third tertile of hydroxylated VLC-PUFA percentage than in the first tertile (RR 1.72 [95% CI; 1.01, 2.94]). Conclusions: The positive correlation between sperm VLC-PUFAs percentage and sperm parameters, as well as the significant association between hydroxylated VLC-PUFA percentage and the outcome of live birth, strongly suggest that this class of fatty liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry acids is essential for normal sperm structure and function.
AB - Objective: To determine whether the levels of sperm very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (VLC-PUFAs) are correlated with sperm parameters and the outcome of live birth after conventional therapy for unexplained infertility. Design: Cohort analysis of the Reproductive Medicine Network's Assessment of Multiple Intrauterine Gestations from Ovarian Stimulation randomized controlled trial. Setting: Multicenter randomized controlled trial. Patients: Male partners from 185 couples with unexplained infertility who provided baseline semen samples for analysis. Intervention: We determined the levels of VLC-PUFAs in total lipid isolated from sperm membranes using liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry analyses. Main Outcome Measures: Sperm concentration, motility, morphology, total motile count (TMC), and live birth after standard treatment for unexplained infertility. Results: Total VLC-PUFA percentage was positively correlated with sperm concentration (Spearman's rank correlation (rs) 0.56, P<.0001), TMC (rs = 0.40, P<.0001), and morphology (rs = 0.26, P=.0005). After adjustment for male body mass index, age, and race, a one-standard-deviation increase in the percentage of total VLC-PUFA was associated with a 62% increase in the geometric mean (GM) of sperm concentration (GM Ratio: 1.62 [95% confidence intervals {CI}: 1.45, 1.82]) and a 43% increase in the geometric mean of TMC (GM Ratio: 1.43 [95% CI; 1.24, 1.63]). Although no evidence of association was observed for sperm motility, a positive relationship was also observed between the percentage of total VLC-PUFA and sperm morphology [adjusted incidence rate ratio (IRR) for one-standard-deviation increase in total VLC-PUFA: 1.18 (95% CI; 1.02, 1.36)]. After adjustment for female age and treatment group, the probability of a live birth outcome was 72% more likely among those in the third tertile of hydroxylated VLC-PUFA percentage than in the first tertile (RR 1.72 [95% CI; 1.01, 2.94]). Conclusions: The positive correlation between sperm VLC-PUFAs percentage and sperm parameters, as well as the significant association between hydroxylated VLC-PUFA percentage and the outcome of live birth, strongly suggest that this class of fatty liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry/mass spectrometry acids is essential for normal sperm structure and function.
KW - fatty acids
KW - ovarian stimulation
KW - sperm lipids
KW - Unexplained infertility
KW - very long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85151441096&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2023.01.020
DO - 10.1016/j.fertnstert.2023.01.020
M3 - Article
C2 - 36681262
AN - SCOPUS:85151441096
SN - 0015-0282
VL - 119
SP - 753
EP - 760
JO - Fertility and Sterility
JF - Fertility and Sterility
IS - 5
ER -