Corrected cholesterol, a novel marker for predicting semen post-thaw quality: a pilot study.

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Medicine
• Andrology
• Cryobiology

Background:

• Semen cryopreservation is crucial for preserving male fertility before iatrogenic treatments.
• Post-thaw sperm quality exhibits significant variability, hindering reliable prediction.
• Current methods lack certainty in predicting sperm's response to cryopreservation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate associations between semen parameters and post-thaw sperm quality.
• To identify novel biomarkers for predicting cryopreservation success.
• To evaluate the predictive value of sperm cholesterol concentration on cryosurvival.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of 101 ejaculates from men attending an andrology clinic.
• Assessment of traditional and novel semen and seminal plasma parameters.
• Calculation of corrected cholesterol (semen cholesterol minus cell-free seminal plasma cholesterol).

Main Results:

• Sperm cholesterol concentration is significantly associated with ejaculate tolerance to cryopreservation.
• Corrected cholesterol effectively predicts post-thaw sperm motility.
• This finding offers a potential new metric for assessing cryosurvival.

Conclusions:

• Corrected cholesterol concentration is a promising predictor of post-thaw sperm motility.
• This biomarker could guide decisions on the number of ejaculates for storage.
• It may aid in selecting appropriate assisted reproductive technologies for frozen-thawed semen.