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Updated: Jun 16, 2025

Flow Cytometric Analysis of Biomarkers for Detecting Human Sperm Functional Defects
Published on: April 21, 2022
Microscopic ferning in human pre-ejaculate is highly correlated with the absence of sperm
Jasmine Patel1, Anita L Nelson2, Brian T Nguyen3
1Division of Family Planning, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of California Irvine, Orange, CA, United States; Section of Family Planning, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, United States.
Objective:
We characterize microscopic ferning in pre-ejaculate samples with and without sperm.
Study Design:
Healthy, male, withdrawal-experienced participants provided up to three paired pre-ejaculate and ejaculate samples. We centrifuged ejaculate samples to obtain a supernatant without sperm. After sperm analysis, we dried and evaluated pre-ejaculate, ejaculate, and supernatants for microscopic ferning.
Results:
Of 57 pre-ejaculate samples (N = 24 men), seven (12.3%) contained sperm, none of which exhibited ferning. Sixty-six percent (33/50) of pre-ejaculate samples without sperm exhibited ferning. Neither ejaculate nor supernatant samples exhibited ferning.
Conclusion:
Ferning may distinguish clinical pre-ejaculate with and without sperm. Ferning exhibited 100% specificity for pre-ejaculate without sperm.
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