Sperm basic proteins in cervical carcinogenesis: Correlation with socioeconomic class.

Two types of basic protein, a histone and a protamine, were separated from single ejaculates of human sperm and a ratio between their contents in a given number of sperm established. The ratio varied widely in different males and correlated with ranking by social class: the lower the social class, the greater the proportion of protamine. Statistically similar correlations link social class with the incidence of venereal disease and the incidence of in-situ carcinoma of the cervix, both of which are epidemiological variables in squamous cervical cancer. The basic proteins of the sperm head, especially the protamines, may thus also have a role in the aetiology of squamous cervical cancer.