Interferon gamma, IL-17, and IL-1β impair sperm motility and viability and induce sperm apoptosis

MARTINEZ, MARIA SOL; PAIRA, DANIELA A.; TISSERA, ANDREA D.; MOLINA, ROSA I.; OLMEDO, JOSE J.; RIVERO, VIRGINIA E.; MOTRICH, RUBEN D.

Buenos Aires

Congreso; Reunión de Sociedades de Biociencias 2021; 2021

Urogenital inflammation is a known cause of male infertility. Increased levels of inflammatory cytokines, leukocyte counts and oxidative stress are highly detrimental for sperm quality thus compromising male fertility. Although cytokines affect sperm by recruiting and activating leukocytes consequently inducing oxidative stress, scarce to absent data have been reported about the putative direct effects of inflammatory cytokines on spermatozoa. Herein, we analyzed whether IFN, IL-17, IL-1β, and IL-8 can directly impair human sperm motility and viability. Fractions of viable and motile spermatozoa from normospermic healthy donors were in vitro incubated with recombinant human IFN, IL-17, IL-1β or IL-8 and sperm motility, viability and apoptosis were analyzed. Sperm exposed to different concentrations of IFN, IL-17 and IL-1β, or a combination of them, for either 1 or 3 h showed significantly reduced motility and viability with respect to sperm incubated with vehicle. Moreover, the exposure to IFN, IL-17 and IL-1β resulted in significantly higher levels of early and/or late apoptotic and/or necrotic spermatozoa. Interestingly, no significant differences in sperm motility, viability and apoptosis were observed in sperm incubated with different concentrations of IL-8, for either 1 or 3 h, with respect to sperm incubated with vehicle. In conclusion, our results indicate that IFN, IL-17 and IL-1β directly impair sperm motility and decreases viability by inducing sperm apoptosis. Our results suggest that examining inflammatory cytokines in semen would be an additional helpful tool for the diagnostic workup of male infertility.