The relationship between sexually transmitted microorganisms and seminal quality in asymptomatic men

Objective:To detect DNA of different microorganisms,in semen samples from apparently healthy men and correlate their presence with seminal quality.Methods:Semensamples from 81 healthy volunteers were collected,and semen parameters were analyzed.DNA extraction was performed using the phenol-chloroform technique,and the micro-organisms were detected by the amplification of specific primers using polymerase chain reaction.Results:DNA from at least one of the microorganisms was detected in 78 samples.The most frequent microorganism found in semen were:Lactobacillus spp.(70%),Neisseria gonorrhoeae(N.gonorrhoeae)(36%),Streptococcus epidermidis(64%),Klebsiella pneumoniae(56%),Staphylococcus aureus(32%),Chlamydia trachomatis(C.trachomatis)(28%),Pseudomonas aeru-ginosa(27%).The seminal parameters of all semen samples were over the lower reference values fornormal semenanalysis.To compare with negative samples,seminal volume was higher for the Escherichia coli positive samples and lower for Pseudomonas aeruginosa positive samples.Semen samples positive for Staphylococcus aureus had worse sperm morphology.The frequency of progressive motility was higher in positive samples for N.gonorrhoeae and C.trachomatis.Positive semen samples for C.trachomatis had a higher concentration per milliliter.Conclusion:It is common to find microorganisms in semen of asymptomatic men,including those responsible for sexually transmitted infections.Antimicrobial treatment is recommended only in those individuals with a sexually transmitted infection(C.trachomatis and N.gonorrhoeae)and always promote condom use.

Spermiogram and sperm head morphometry assessed by multivariate cluster analysis results during adolescence （12-18 years） and the effect of varicocele

This work evaluates sperm head morphometric characteristics in adolescents from 12 to 18 years of age, and the effect of varicocele. Volunteers between 150 and 224 months of age （mean 191, n = 87）, who had reached oigarche by 12 years old, were recruited in the area of Barranquilla, Colombia. Morphometric analysis of sperm heads was performed with principal component （PC） and discriminant analysis, Combining seminal fluid and sperm parameters provided five PCs： two related to sperm morphometry, one to sperm motility, and two to seminal fluid components. Discriminant analysis on the morphometric results of varicocele and nonvaricocele groups did not provide a useful classification matrix. Of the semen-related PCs, the most explanatory （40%） was related to sperm motility. Two PCs, including sperm head elongation and size, were sufficient to evaluate sperm morphometric characteristics. Most of the morphometric variables were correlated with age, with an increase in size and decrease in the elongation of the sperm head. For head size, the entire sperm population could be divided into two morphometric subpopulations, SP1 and SP2, which did not change during adolescence. In general, for varicocele individuals, SP1 had larger and more elongated sperm heads than SP2, which had smaller and more elongated heads than in nonvaricocele men. In summary, sperm head morphometry assessed by CASA-Morph and multivariate cluster analysis provides a better comprehension of the ejaculate structure and possibly sperm function. Morphometric analysis provides much more information than data obtained from conventional semen analysis.