新型冠状病毒肺炎疫情下对男性生育力的关注和思考

Male fertility in the context of COVID-19: Concern and considerations

新型冠状病毒肺炎疫情爆发以来已累计造成全世界13万余人感染。多项研究提示睾丸为病毒感染受体血管紧张素转换酶2(ACE2)高表达器官之一,由此引发了公众对男性生育力的关注与担忧。本文通过对已有研究文献的回顾分析,有助于客观认识ACE2在睾丸中表达的意义。目前新型冠状病毒肺炎患者临床和实验室研究数据仍缺乏,尚无直接证据表明睾丸是病毒的靶器官,男性患者人群是否存在生育力损害有待后续评估。因此,针对男性患者生育力的关注需适度,在缺乏相关研究数据的情况下不应过度解读。

Since the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19),more than 130,000 people worldwide have been infected.Many studies show that the testis is one of the organs with a high expression of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2(ACE2),the receptor/binding protein of SARS-CoV-2,which has aroused public concerns about the possible damage to male fertility.This article presents a review and analysis of the existing literature,aiming to achieve an objective understanding of the significance of the ACE2 expression in the testis.Hitherto,clinical and laboratory data available on COVID-19 are not sufficient to provide any direct evidence that the testis is a target organ of the virus.Whether the coronavirus damages fertility in male patients with COVID-19 requires further investigation.In the absence of sufficient research-based evidence,damage of the virus to male fertility should not be over-interpreted.