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Metal chelators change the human sperm motility pattern

Nicolai Wroblewski1, Wolf Bernhard Schill, Ralf Henkel

  • 1Center for Dermatology and Andrology, Justus Liebig University, Giessen, Germany.

Fertility and Sterility
|June 13, 2003
PubMed
Abstract

Insights

Chelators can improve sperm motility by removing zinc from the sperm tail. This process influences sperm structure, leading to enhanced progressive motility and velocity straight line (VSL).

Area of Science:

  • Reproductive Biology
  • Sperm Physiology
  • Trace Element Metabolism

Background:

  • Zinc plays a crucial role in sperm function and motility.
  • Understanding the mechanisms of zinc's influence on sperm is vital for reproductive health.
  • Chelating agents offer a potential avenue to modulate sperm parameters.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how zinc affects sperm motility generation.
  • To evaluate the impact of specific chelators on sperm motility parameters.
  • To explore the potential of chelators in improving sperm quality.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective study involving 73 patients and 10 sperm donors.
  • Spermatozoa isolated via swim-up and incubated with chelators (DL-penicillamine, etc.) at varying concentrations.
  • Motility assessed using computer-assisted semen analysis (CASA) over 1-6 hours.

Main Results:

  • Significant dose-dependent changes in nonlinear motility, progressive motility, and velocity straight line (VSL) were observed.
  • Incubation with chelators led to decreased nonlinear motility and increased progressive motility and VSL.
  • DL-penicillamine demonstrated the strongest effect on sperm motility after 2 hours.

Conclusions:

  • Chelators can effectively remove zinc from the sperm flagellum.
  • Zinc elimination by chelators induces changes in outer dense fibers, mimicking in vivo epididymal maturation.
  • This mechanism ultimately results in improved sperm motility.

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