Some infertile men have mutations or errors in their DNA code, suggesting that faulty DNA repair may be a reason for their infertility, according to UC San Francisco researchers.
Moreover, this kind of DNA repair problem is similar to that found in certain kinds of cancer patients, and is linked to the abnormal growth of tumor cells. This finding has prompted the UCSF researchers to wonder if some infertile men could pass the problem of faulty DNA repair to offspring conceived through high technology- assisted reproduction methods. If so, this could potentially increase the risk of these children also being infertile, and might also predispose them to developing cancer, according to the researchers.
The research will be published in the June edition of the British journal Human Reproduction. The research, which was a small study of ten men, was performed in the laboratory of Renee Reijo Pera, MD, UCSF assistant professor in the departments of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Urology, Human Genetics and Physiology.
"The conclusion is that some male infertility may be related to a larger problem of defective DNA repair. This is encouraging news because it helps us explain why some men are infertile. What is worrisome, though, is that defective DNA repair has a long association with cancer," said Paul Turek, MD, another study author and UCSF associate professor of urology. "The implications are that maybe infertility is not a minor problem. Maybe there is a very good reason for men to be infertile."
Of all couples in America who are trying to conceive, 20 percent cannot, Turek said. Among those, half are due to male factor infertility. And many of the cases of male infertility are unexplained, Turek said. Common causes of male infertility include dilated veins in the scrotum (varicoceles), infections and toxin exposure.
"A significant portion of the infertility we can't explain now is probably going to end up bei
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Contact: Leslie Harris
lharris@pubaff.ucsf.edu
415-885-7277
University of California - San Francisco
31-May-2000