Detection of pro-oxidant activity
Infertile men exhibit significantly increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels. These individuals tend to show a reduction in antioxidant capacity compared with fertile controls. ROS assays tend to focus on ROS production by isolated spermatozoa or leukocytes, since they are a source of ROS.
Between 25 to 50% of patients attending infertility clinics have high concentration of ROS that may be associated with abnormal sperm motility, membrane integrity and poor DNA quality. Some of these patients are treated with antioxidant cocktails to correct this problem but without any previous assessment of the pro-oxidant activity present in the ejaculate.