Antibiotic toxicity on human spermatozoa assessed using the sperm DNA fragmentation dynamic assay.

Sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF) dynamic assays were piloted on 4 fresh ejaculates to examine the possible sperm toxicity of three common antibiotics, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline and ampicillin, incubated at a concentration estimated to be reached in semen in vivo, and 100×, for 24 h. SDF was assessed in terms of single-strand DNA breaks (SSBs) and double-strand DNA breaks (DSBs). Low and high concentrations of ciprofloxacin and high concentration of doxycycline significantly increased the SDF rate, due to sperm containing SSBs.

DNA fragmentation of human spermatozoa: Simple assessment of single- and double-strand DNA breaks and their respective dynamic behavioral response.

Background: Procedures to detect sperm DNA fragmentation (SDF), like the sperm chromatin dispersion (SCD) test, determine the "global" SDF without discriminating between spermatozoa with single-strand DNA breaks only (SDF-SSBs) and those containing double-strand DNA breaks (SDF-DSBs).

Objectives: (a) To validate a test to distinguish human spermatozoa with massive DSBs (DSB-SCD assay), (b) to study the baseline SDF-SSBs and SDF-DSBs, and (c) to assess their dynamics in vitro.

Materials And Methods: (a) SDF-DSBs were determined by visualization of diffused DNA fragments from spermatozoa lysed under non-denaturing conditions.

The sperm chromatin dispersion test: a simple method for the determination of sperm DNA fragmentation.

Sperm DNA fragmentation is being increasingly recognized as an important cause of infertility. We herein describe the Sperm Chromatin Dispersion (SCD) test, a novel assay for sperm DNA fragmentation in semen. The SCD test is based on the principle that sperm with fragmented DNA fail to produce the characteristic halo of dispersed DNA loops that is observed in sperm with non-fragmented DNA, following acid denaturation and removal of nuclear proteins.