Liu Jianfeng, Fang Zhixiang, Chai Dongyue, Zhu Zhipeng, Shen Qunshan, He Xiaojin
State Key Laboratory of Information Engineering in Surveying, Mapping and Remote Sensing, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430070, China.
School of Medicine, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200080, China.
Toxics. 2025 Apr 20;13(4):322. doi: 10.3390/toxics13040322.
Amidst China's rapid industrialization and deteriorating air quality, emerging evidence suggests a parallel decline in male reproductive health. However, large-scale assessments of pollution-semen quality associations remain scarce. This nationwide multicenter study investigated these relationships among 27,014 Chinese men using high-resolution satellite-derived exposure estimates (PM, PM, NO, O, CO, and SO) and generalized linear mixed models (GLMM), adjusting for key demographic confounders. A case-control study involving 5256 cases and 21758 controls used the exposure values of air pollutants 90 days prior to sperm collection for epidemiological exposure analysis reactions to obtain the association between sperm quality and air pollution. This study demonstrates significant associations between increased exposure to regional air pollutants and the risk of substandard semen quality in China. Key findings reveal NO's potential reproductive toxicity, showing a 79.7% increased risk of semen volume abnormalities per 11.34 µg/m exposure (OR = 1.797, 95% CI: 1.402-2.302). Susceptibility disparities emerged, with 16.4-fold greater PM sensitivity in obese individuals (OR = 1.121 vs. 1.007) and 133% higher PM risk in urban residents (OR = 1.342 vs. 1.006). Strikingly, SO exposure at 15% of the WHO 24 h average guideline (6.16 µg/m) was associated with a 3.8% increase in abnormalities, indicating the challenge of the current safety thresholds. These findings highlight the need for policy reforms, including (1) incorporating reproductive health endpoints into air quality standards, (2) implementing antioxidant interventions for high-risk groups, and (3) strengthening traffic emission controls in urban planning. This study underscores the need for comprehensive strategies to mitigate the impact of air pollution on male reproductive health.
在中国快速工业化和空气质量恶化的背景下,新出现的证据表明男性生殖健康也在同步下降。然而,关于污染与精液质量关联的大规模评估仍然很少。这项全国性多中心研究,使用高分辨率卫星得出的暴露估计值(PM、PM、NO、O、CO和SO)和广义线性混合模型(GLMM),对27014名中国男性进行了调查,并对关键人口统计学混杂因素进行了调整。一项包含5256例病例和21758例对照的病例对照研究,使用了精液采集前90天的空气污染物暴露值进行流行病学暴露分析反应,以获得精子质量与空气污染之间的关联。本研究表明,在中国,区域空气污染物暴露增加与精液质量不合格风险之间存在显著关联。主要发现揭示了NO的潜在生殖毒性,每暴露于11.34µg/m,精液量异常风险增加79.7%(OR = 1.797,95%CI:1.402 - 2.302)。出现了易感性差异,肥胖个体对PM的敏感性高16.4倍(OR = 1.121对1.007),城市居民的PM风险高133%(OR = 1.342对1.006)。令人惊讶的是,SO暴露达到世界卫生组织24小时平均指导值的15%(6.16µg/m)时,异常情况增加了3.8%,这表明当前安全阈值面临挑战。这些发现凸显了政策改革的必要性,包括(1)将生殖健康终点纳入空气质量标准,(2)对高危人群实施抗氧化干预措施,以及(3)在城市规划中加强交通排放控制。本研究强调需要采取综合策略来减轻空气污染对男性生殖健康的影响。