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Zinc and Iron Concentration and SOD Activity in Human Semen and Seminal Plasma

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Abstract

The aim of the present study was to measure zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe) concentration in human semen and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity in seminal plasma and correlate the results with sperm quality. Semen samples were obtained from men (N = 168) undergoing routine infertility evaluation. The study design included two groups based on the ejaculate parameters. Group I (n = 39) consisted of males with normal ejaculate (normozoospermia), and group II (n = 129) consisted of males with pathological spermiogram. Seminal Zn and Fe were measured in 162 samples (group I, n = 38; group II, n = 124) and SOD activity in 149 samples (group I, n = 37; group II, n = 112). Correlations were found between SOD activity and Fe and Zn concentration, and between Fe and Zn concentration. SOD activity was negatively associated with volume of semen and positively associated with rapid progressive motility, nonprogressive motility, and concentration. Negative correlation was stated between Fe concentration and normal morphology. Mean SOD activity in seminal plasma of semen from men of group I was higher than in seminal plasma of semen from men of group II. Fe concentration was higher in teratozoospermic males than in males with normal morphology of spermatozoa in group II. Our results suggest that Fe may influence spermatozoa morphology.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by grant number 47-2008 from the Rector Magnificus of Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń. This work was supported from funds of European Social Fund and State budget within the framework of the Integrated Program of Operating Regional Development, the Activity 2.6 “Regional Innovative Strategies and Knowledge Transfer” of individual project of the Kuyavian-Pomeranian Province: “Scholarships for Graduate Students of 2008/2009–ZPORR.”

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Ecology and Environmental Protection, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Urszula Marzec-Wróblewska & Piotr Kamiński

  2. Department of Animal Biotechnology, University of Technology and Life Sciences, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Paweł Łakota

  3. Department of Obstetrics, Female Pathology and Oncological Gynecology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, University Hospital No. 2, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Marek Szymański

  4. NZOZ Medical Center, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Marek Szymański & Karolina Wasilow

  5. Family Medicine Clinic, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, University Hospital No. 2, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Karolina Wasilow

  6. Department of Clinical Andrology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, University Hospital No. 2, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Grzegorz Ludwikowski

  7. Department of Laboratory Diagnostics, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Magdalena Kuligowska-Prusińska & Grażyna Odrowąż-Sypniewska

  8. Department of Soil Structure, Institute of Soil and Plant Cultivation, Government Scientific Institute, Puławy, Poland

    Tomasz Stuczyński

  9. Department of Immunology, Nicolaus Copernicus University, Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, Bydgoszcz, Poland

    Jacek Michałkiewicz

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  1. Urszula Marzec-Wróblewska
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Correspondence to Piotr Kamiński.

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Marzec-Wróblewska, U., Kamiński, P., Łakota, P. et al. Zinc and Iron Concentration and SOD Activity in Human Semen and Seminal Plasma. Biol Trace Elem Res 143, 167–177 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-010-8868-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12011-010-8868-x

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