Determine Dna Fragmentation in Normospermic and Oligospermic Samples: A Pilot Study

Introduction: Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) plays an imperative role in infertility management.The success of ART depends on the interplay of several factors for the sustainability of sperm functions.A motile and morphologically normal sperm may have DNA fragmentation.The objective of our pilot study was to determine the status of DNA fragmentation of sperms among men presenting to an infertility Centre in Karachi, Pakistan.Assisted reproductive technologies (ART) plays an imperative role in infertility management.Methods: We conducted a pilot study at the Australian Concept Infertility Medical Centre (ACIMC), Karachi, Pakistan.We recruited 7 oligozoospermic samples and 3 normozoospermic samples according to WHO criteria (2010).The (DNA Fragmentation Index) DFI was assessed by the sperm chromatin dispersion test (SCD).The cut off for which were; < 15% fragmentation (normal), 15-30% (moderate fragmentation) and ≥ 30% (severe DNA fragmentation).Results: DNA fragmentation was not significantly different in normozoospermic and oligospermic sample (p value=0.3).A higher proportion of oligospermic males had non-normal forms of sperms with severe DNA fragmentation i.e 5 out 7 while the normozoospermic sample had a higher proportion of normal forms of sperms with severe DNA fragmentation i.e 2 out of 3.There was moderate negative correlation between fragmented DNA % and live count rho = -0.642(p value=0.045).Conclusion: We conclude that it is essential to measure the sperm DNA fragmentation when evaluating the morphologically normal cell.In future male infertility should be diagnosed based on conventional seminological parameters as well as DNA fragmentation analysis.