Detection of oncogenic human papillomavirus genotypes on spermatozoa from male partners of infertile couples

Objective: To evaluate the prevalence of human papillomavirus (HPV) sperm infection and its correlation with sperm parameters in patients who attended a fertility clinic. Design: Cross-sectional clinical study. Setting: University-affiliated Reproductive Medicine Clinic. Patients: A total of 308 male partners of couples undergoing in vitro fertilization techniques. Interventions: Specimens of semen were collected from all patients. Main Outcome Measures: Sperm parameters were evaluated according to the World Health Organization manual. The presence of HPV-DNA was researched by the combined use of two HPV assays and a highly sensitive nested PCR assay, followed by HPV genotyping. To examine whether HPV was associated with the sperm, in situ hybridization (ISH) analysis was performed. Results: Results of HPV investigation were compared to sperm parameters and ISH analysis. Twenty-four out of 308 (7.8%) semen samples were HPV DNA positive but HPV infection does not seem to affect semen quality. Moreover, ISH revealed a clear HPV localization at the equatorial region of sperm head in infected samples. Conclusions: Oncogenic HPV genotypes were detected on spermatozoa from asymptomatic subjects but a role of the infection in male infertility was not demonstrated.