Institute of Reproductive Health, Center for Reproductive Medicine, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430030, China.
The Affiliated Jinyang Hospital of Guizhou Medical University, Guiyang 550018, China.
Asian J Androl. 2024 Sep 1;26(5):464-471. doi: 10.4103/aja202389. Epub 2024 May 7.
Infections and inflammatory reactions in the male genital tract are the leading causes of male infertility with a prevalence of 6%-10%, primarily affecting testicular and epididymal function and ultimately compromising sperm quality. However, most infertile patients with genital infection/inflammation are asymptomatic and easily overlooked. Traditional indicators, including white blood cells, elastase, and other components in semen, can reflect inflammation of the genital tract, but there is still a lack of a uniform standard method of detection. Therefore, it is necessary to explore reliable markers in semen that reflect the inflammatory status of the genital tract. Using the experimental autoimmune orchitis (EAO) model to simulate noninfectious chronic orchitis, we successfully collected ejaculated seminal fluid from EAO rats using optimized electrical stimulation devices. Proteomic analysis was performed using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ). Compared to the control group, 55 upregulated and 105 downregulated proteins were identified in seminal plasma samples from the EAO group. In a preliminary screening, the inflammation-related protein S100A8/A9 was upregulated. We further verified that S100A8/A9 was increased in seminal plasma and highly expressed in testicular macrophages of the EAO model. In patients with oligoasthenospermia and genital tract infections, we also found that S100A8/A9 levels were remarkably increased in seminal plasma and testicular macrophages. S100A8/A9 in semen may be a potential biomarker for chronic genital inflammation. Our study provides a new potential biomarker for early diagnosis and further understanding of male infertility caused by genital inflammation.
生殖道感染和炎症反应是男性不育的主要原因，其患病率为 6%-10%，主要影响睾丸和附睾功能，最终导致精子质量下降。然而，大多数生殖道感染/炎症的不育患者无症状，容易被忽视。传统指标，如精液中的白细胞、弹性蛋白酶和其他成分，可以反映生殖道炎症，但仍缺乏统一的检测标准方法。因此，有必要探索反映生殖道炎症状态的可靠精液标志物。我们使用实验性自身免疫性睾丸炎（EAO）模型模拟非感染性慢性睾丸炎，成功地使用优化的电刺激装置从 EAO 大鼠中采集射出精液。使用等重标记相对和绝对定量（iTRAQ）进行蛋白质组学分析。与对照组相比，EAO 组精液样本中鉴定出 55 个上调蛋白和 105 个下调蛋白。在初步筛选中，炎症相关蛋白 S100A8/A9 上调。我们进一步验证了 S100A8/A9 在 EAO 模型的精液和睾丸巨噬细胞中增加。在少弱精子症和生殖道感染患者中，我们还发现 S100A8/A9 在精液和睾丸巨噬细胞中的水平显著增加。精液中的 S100A8/A9 可能是慢性生殖道炎症的潜在生物标志物。我们的研究为慢性生殖器炎症引起的男性不育的早期诊断和进一步研究提供了一个新的潜在生物标志物。
