Comparació de les principals tècniques de millora de la motilitat espermàtica pel tractament de la infertilitat masculina
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The human spermatozoon is a highly differentiated cell type whose function is to
transport the genetic material into the oocyte, without being altered in the process.
Spermatozoa are produced in the testes and then have to undergo some modifications in
order to become functional and be able to fertilize the oocyte. Among these modifications,
the acquisition of motility is an essential process since it is indispensable that spermatozoa
have good motility in order to perform their function. The motor that enables this motility
is the axoneme, an internal microtubular structure that begins at the connecting piece and
reaches the terminal piece of the sperm tail. Therefore, among the parameters involved in
male fertility, sperm motility has a very important role.
In recent years, the increasing rate of infertility has become a clinical problem and, the
number of couples that must attend to assisted reproductive techniques (ART), in order
to achieve pregnancy, is growing up. One of the most common causes of male infertility
is due to problems related to sperm motility, mainly caused by an overproduction of
reactive oxygen species. On the other side, sperm motility is also an important parameter
in ART, because it influences the choice of the treatment. Therefore, it is necessary to
find therapeutic agents that increase sperm motility in vitro and/or in vivo, but without
affecting the fertilization capacity of the spermatozoa or further embryo development, in
other words that is, without side effects derived from the process of sperm stimulation.
For this reason, a literature search was carried out with the aim of learning and comparing
different approaches and therapeutic agents that improve sperm motility to treat male
infertility due to a low quality of this sperm parameter. Usually, the increase in sperm
motility in vivo is due to a decrease of the oxidative stress at a testicular level through the
use of antioxidants, meanwhile, in in vitro procedures, it is due to the use of
phosphodiesterase inhibitors. The results obtained in in vitro treatments are more
promising compared to those obtained in vivo ones, but further research is required to
ensure clinical effectiveness and safety of the discussed compounds