Molecular Alterations and Severe Abnormalities in Spermatozoa of Young Men Living in the “Valley of Sacco River” (Latium, Italy): A Preliminary Study

Publication date: 3 Set 2022

JournalSource: OPENALEXOpenAlex type: articleOpen Access
Authors: Pasquale Perrone, Gennaro Lettieri, Carmela Marinaro, Valentina Longo, Simonetta Capone, Angiola Forleo, Sebastiana Pappalardo, Luigi Montano, Marina Piscopo

The Valley of Sacco River (VSR) (Latium, Italy) is an area with large-scale industrial chemical production that has led over time to significant contamination of soil and groundwater with various industrial pollutants, such as organic pesticides, dioxins, organic solvents, heavy metals, and particularly, volatile organic compounds (VOCs). In the present study, we investigated the potential impact of VOCs on the spermatozoa of healthy young males living in the VSR, given the prevalent presence of several VOCs in the semen of these individuals. To accomplish this, spermiograms were conducted followed by molecular analyses to assess the content of sperm nuclear basic proteins (SNBPs) in addition to the protamine-histone ratio and DNA binding of these proteins. We found drastic alterations in the spermatozoa of these young males living in the VSR. Alterations were seen in sperm morphology, sperm motility, sperm count, and protamine/histone ratios, and included significant reductions in SNBP-DNA binding capacity. Our results provide preliminary indications of a possible correlation between the observed alterations and the presence of specific VOCs.

Origin
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Volume
19
Issue
17
Pages
11023
Cited by
31