Seminal plasma biochemical markers and their association with semen analysis findings

To examine the clinical value of six seminal plasma components in the evaluation of sperm quality and in the differential diagnosis of men with infertility.

We analyzed 202 seminal plasmas for prostate-specific antigen, glucose, pepsinogen C, insulin-like growth factor binding protein-3, prostaglandin D synthase (PGDS), and BRCA1-like immunoreactive protein (BRCA1-LIP) using quantitative immunofluorometric procedures. The semen donors were categorized in four clinical groups: normal, oligospermic, azoospermic, and vasectomy patients. We then evaluated whether any of these biochemical markers were associated with other parameters of sperm quality, including patient age, total cell concentration, percentage of motility, and percentage of normal morphology.

We found that only PGDS concentration was significantly associated with other parameters of sperm quality. PGDS concentration correlated positively with total cell concentration (r = 0.55), percentage of motility (r = 0.31), and percentage of normal morphology (r = 0.31). Median PGDS concentration in seminal plasma decreased progressively from normal to oligospermic to azoospermic to vasectomy patients (P <0.001). There was no overlap between seminal plasma PGDS concentration of normal subjects versus vasectomy patients. The only other parameter that was moderately decreased in vasectomy patients was BRCA1-LIP. The source of PGDS in seminal plasma was determined with various techniques, including immunohistochemistry. This protein is produced and secreted by the Sertoli cells.

Our findings suggest that PGDS concentration in seminal plasma correlates with other known indicators of semen quality and is a new marker of post-testicular obstruction. This biochemical parameter could be used to aid in the differential diagnosis of obstructive and nonobstructive azoospermia in men with infertility.