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The effects of platelet-activating factor on the motility of human spermatozoa
D D Ricker1, B S Minhas, R Kumar
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, East Tennessee State University, James H. Quillen College of Medicine, Johnson City 37614.
Abstract:
Our laboratory has recently detected the presence of platelet-activating factor (PAF)-like activity in human spermatozoa. To gain further insight into the role of PAF on the male reproductive system, this study, using videomicroscopy, evaluated the effects of synthetic PAF on the motility of human spermatozoa. Treatment of 20 human semen samples with 3.69 x 10(-7) to 3.69 x 10(-13) M PAF resulted in statistically significant increases in motility. Treatment of spermatozoa with lyso-PAF (the biologically inactive form of PAF) showed no change in motility. Treatment of spermatozoa with PAF in severely asthenozoospermic males may be of therapeutic value.