Skip Navigation



Hum. Reprod. Advance Access published online on July 22, 2004
Human Reproduction, doi:10.1093/humrep/deh417
© 2004 by European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology
This Article
Right arrow FREE Full Text (PDF ) Freely available
Right arrow All Versions of this Article:
19/10/2277    most recent
deh417v1
Right arrow Submit a response
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me when eLetters are posted
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Add to My Personal Archive
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrowRequest Permissions
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Erenpreiss, J.
Right arrow Articles by Spano, M.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Erenpreiss, J.
Right arrow Articles by Spano, M.
Social Bookmarking
Add to CiteULike   Add to Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us  
What's this?

Received January 2, 2004
Revised April 16, 2004
Accepted June 22, 2004

Article

Toluidine blue cytometry test for sperm DNA conformation: comparison with the flow cytometric sperm chromatin structure and TUNEL assays

J. Erenpreiss 1*, K. Jepson 2, A. Giwercman 2, I. Tsarev 3, Je. Erenpreisa 3, M. Spano 4

1 Fertility Centre, Malmö University Hospital, SE 205 02 Malmö, Sweden; Latvian University Biomedicine Centre, Ratsupites 1, LV 1067 Riga, Latvia, Italy
2 Fertility Centre, Malmö University Hospital, SE 205 02 Malmö, Sweden
3 Latvian University Biomedicine Centre, Ratsupites 1, LV 1067 Riga, Latvia, Italy
4 Section of Toxicology and Biomedical Sciences, BIOTEC-MED, ENEA CR Casaccia, Via Anguillarese 301, 00060 Rome, Italy

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: Juris.Erenpreiss{at}kir.mas.lu.se.


  Abstract

BACKGROUND: Sperm DNA integrity (SDI) is an important factor in the prognosis of male fertility. Here we compare the toluidine blue (TB) image cytometry test, recently proposed by us for SDI assessment, with two other tests--the sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA) and the terminal nick-end labelling (TUNEL) assay. METHODS: Sperm samples from 35 men were evaluated for standard sperm parameters and subjected to the TB test and SCSA. Eighteen of the 35 samples were also subjected to the TUNEL assay. RESULTS: The proportion of sperm cells with abnormal DNA integrity assayed by the TB test correlated strongly with the proportion of abnormal cells detected by the SCSA and TUNEL assay ({rho}=-0.84 and {rho}=0.80, P<0.001, respectively). Furthermore, the fractions of abnormal cells by the TB test corresponded closely to the sum of two SCSA parameters, the DNA fragmentation index (DFI) and the fraction of highly DNA-stainable cells (HDS) (medians 33.0 versus 32.0%, P=0.6). CONCLUSIONS: Abnormal cells in a TB test correspond to the sum of DFI and HDS fractions in the SCSA. TB-positive cells may represent sperm with fragmented DNA and/or abnormal chromatin structure. Because the TB test is an easy and inexpensive method, its potential use as a routine test for sperm DNA integrity, complementary to standard semen parameters, should be investigated further.

Keywords: flow cytometry; infertility; sperm chromatin; sperm DNA integrity; toluidine blue test.
Add to CiteULike CiteULike   Add to Connotea Connotea   Add to Del.icio.us Del.icio.us    What's this?


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
I. Tsarev, M. Bungum, A. Giwercman, J. Erenpreisa, T. Ebessen, E. Ernst, and J. Erenpreiss
Evaluation of male fertility potential by Toluidine Blue test for sperm chromatin structure assessment
Hum. Reprod., July 1, 2009; 24(7): 1569 - 1574.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Biol. Reprod.Home page
G. Cavallini, A. Crippa, M. C. Magli, N. Cavallini, A. P. Ferraretti, and L. Gianaroli
A Study to Sustain the Hypothesis of the Multiple Genesis of Oligoasthenoteratospermia in Human Idiopathic Infertile Males
Biol Reprod, October 1, 2008; 79(4): 667 - 673.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 MutagenesisHome page
S. E. M. Lewis and I. M. Agbaje
Using the alkaline comet assay in prognostic tests for male infertility and assisted reproductive technology outcomes
Mutagenesis, May 1, 2008; 23(3): 163 - 170.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
O. Stahl, J. Eberhard, K. Jepson, M. Spano, M. Cwikiel, E. Cavallin-Stahl, and A. Giwercman
Sperm DNA integrity in testicular cancer patients
Hum. Reprod., December 1, 2006; 21(12): 3199 - 3205.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
E. V. Zubkova and B. Robaire
Effects of ageing on spermatozoal chromatin and its sensitivity to in vivo and in vitro oxidative challenge in the Brown Norway rat
Hum. Reprod., November 1, 2006; 21(11): 2901 - 2910.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
J. Erenpreiss, M. Bungum, M. Spano, S. Elzanaty, J. Orbidans, and A. Giwercman
Intra-individual variation in sperm chromatin structure assay parameters in men from infertile couples: clinical implications
Hum. Reprod., August 1, 2006; 21(8): 2061 - 2064.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
G. B. Boe-Hansen, J. Fedder, A. K. Ersboll, and P. Christensen
The sperm chromatin structure assay as a diagnostic tool in the human fertility clinic
Hum. Reprod., June 1, 2006; 21(6): 1576 - 1582.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 J AndrolHome page
A. A. Makhlouf and C. Niederberger
DNA Integrity Tests in Clinical Practice: It Is Not a Simple Matter of Black and White (or Red and Green)
J Androl, May 1, 2006; 27(3): 316 - 323.
[Full Text] [PDF]

Home page
 Hum ReprodHome page
D. Evenson
Reply to: 'The predictive value of the sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA)'--a response from the SCSA inventor.
Hum. Reprod., February 1, 2006; 21(2): 570 - 572.
[Full Text] [PDF]


Disclaimer: Please note that abstracts for content published before 1996 were created through digital scanning and may therefore not exactly replicate the text of the original print issues. All efforts have been made to ensure accuracy, but the Publisher will not be held responsible for any remaining inaccuracies. If you require any further clarification, please contact our Customer Services Department.