The Role of Environmental Toxicant-Induced Oxidative Stress in Male Infertility

Infertility is a serious public health issue affecting around 15% of couples globally. Of the 60-80 million people of reproductive age affected by infertility, 40-50% are due to male factor while 30-40% of cases are still idiopathic. The recent global deterioration in sperm quality raises apprehensions regarding the toxic effects of environmental pollutants on reproductive health of males. Environmental toxicants have shown strong evidences for inducing oxidative stress affecting spermatogenesis severely, thereby leading to reduced sperm motility, count, and DNA damage. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) influences the spermatozoa development and transit process both internally and externally. Low level of ROS is indispensable for critical physiological sperm processes like sperm capacitation, motility, acrosome reaction, hyper-activation, sperm-oocyte interaction, etc., while excessive ROS disrupt antioxidant molecules which is detrimental to normal functioning of the sperm. Hence, identification of potential environmental toxicant may have clinical relevance for early screening and diagnosis of male infertility.