Department of EmbryologyReproductive Biomedicine Research CentreRoyan Institute for Reproductive BiomedicineACECRTehranIran; Department of Animal BiologyFaculty of Biological SciencesKharazmi UniversityTehranIran.
Department of Poultry ScienceFaculty of AgricultureTarbiat Modares UniversityTehranIran.
Reprod Biomed Online. 2018 Sep;37(3):327-339. doi: 10.1016/j.rbmo.2018.05.012. Epub 2018 Aug 22.
The cryopreservation of spermatozoa was introduced in the 1960s as a route to fertility preservation. Despite the extensive progress that has been made in this field, the biological and biochemical mechanisms involved in cryopreservation have not been thoroughly elucidated to date. Various factors during the freezing process, including sudden temperature changes, ice formation and osmotic stress, have been proposed as reasons for poor sperm quality post-thaw. Little is known regarding the new aspects of sperm cryobiology, such as epigenetic and proteomic modulation of sperm and trans-generational effects of sperm freezing. This article reviews recent reports on molecular and cellular modifications of spermatozoa during cryopreservation in order to collate the existing understanding in this field. The aim is to discuss current freezing techniques and novel strategies that have been developed for sperm protection against cryo-damage, as well as evaluating the probable effects of sperm freezing on offspring health.
精子的冷冻保存技术于 20 世纪 60 年代问世，作为一种生育力保存的途径。尽管在这一领域已经取得了广泛的进展，但迄今为止，冷冻保存所涉及的生物学和生物化学机制尚未得到彻底阐明。冷冻过程中的各种因素，包括温度的突然变化、冰晶的形成和渗透压力，都被认为是解冻后精子质量差的原因。对于精子冷冻生物学的新方面，如精子的表观遗传和蛋白质组学调节以及精子冷冻的跨代效应，人们知之甚少。本文综述了近年来关于精子冷冻保存过程中精子分子和细胞修饰的最新报告，以整理该领域现有的认识。目的是讨论目前开发的用于保护精子免受冷冻损伤的冷冻技术和新策略，并评估精子冷冻对后代健康的可能影响。
