Influence of human papillomavirus on semen parameters and male infertility: a single-center study

To detect the presence of seminal HPV and examine its association with semen quality in men from infertile and fertile couples.

This single-center case-control study involved 50 men from infertile couples and 10 proven-fertility men as controls. Semen samples collected were analyzed using computer-aided semen analysis and tested for HPV detection and genotyping with real-time PCR.

HPV DNA was detected in the semen of 9 men from infertile couples (18.0%) and 1 proven-fertility control (10.0%). Among infertile couples, HPV positivity was linked to significantly altered semen parameters: increased progressive motility (p=0.0399), higher presence of sperm with excess residual cytoplasm (p=0.05), and a lower percentage of normal acrosomes (p=0.05). Kinematic measurements, including straight-line velocity (VSL, p=0.0235), average path velocity (VAP, p=0.0434), linearity (LIN, p=0.05), wobble (WOB, p=0.05), and beat cross frequency (BCF, p=0.0239), were significantly higher in HPV-positive infertile men. Compared to fertile controls, HPV-positive men from the infertile group showed significantly lower sperm concentration (p=0.0493), total motile sperm count (p=0.0291), and mucus penetration ability (p=0.0088), along with a reduced percentage of morphologically normal sperm (p=0.05). Conversely, they had higher rates of sperm with excess residual cytoplasm (p=0.05), tail deformities (p=0.05), and neck and midpiece deformities (p=0.0499).

Seminal HPV is associated with impaired sperm parameters in infertile men. This highlights HPV's role as a potential contributing factor in male infertility, warranting further investigations.