Glutathione in spermatozoa and seminal plasma of infertile men

Glutathione has a central role in the defence against oxidative damage; however, the data on glutathione concentrations in the semen of infertile men are limited. To expand this knowledge the glutathione content of the ejaculates and blood plasmas of 77 infertile men and 11 controls were analysed. The concentrations of total glutathione were assessed in spermatozoa, seminal plasma and blood plasma using a coupled spectrophotometric assay. In the spermatozoa of patients with oligozoospermia the glutathione concentrations (2.57+/-0.96 nmol/10[8] spermatozoa; mean +/- SD) were significantly lower than in the controls (3.49+/-0.87 nmol/10[8] spermatozoa; P +/- 0.03). The glutathione content of spermatozoa from patients with normozoospermia showed large variations (3.04+/-1.37 nmol/10[8] spermatozoa). An association between the intracellular glutathione content and the ability to penetrate bovine cervical mucus was observed (r = 0.2, P = 0.04). The intracellular glutathione concentrations correlated with the glutathione levels in seminal plasma (r = 0.46, P < 0.0001). There was no correlation between glutathione concentrations in blood plasma and those in seminal plasma or in spermatozoa. The glutathione concentrations in seminal plasmas did not differ between the different groups, however, correlated with the serum follicle stimulating hormone concentrations (r = 0.53, P = 0.005). This study demonstrated that intracellular glutathione levels of spermatozoa are decreased in certain populations of infertile men.