Date of Award

Fall 1984

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Department

Chemistry & Biochemistry

Program/Concentration

Clinical Chemistry

Committee Director

Patricia A. Pleban

Committee Member

Steve B. Ackerman

Committee Member

Anibal Acosta

Committee Member

James H. Yuan

Call Number for Print

Special Collections LD4331.C45M44

Abstract

Methodologies for the determination of cadmium, copper, selenium and zinc concentration in human seminal plasma have been developed using polarized Zeeman-effect atomic absorption spectroscopy. Within-run coefficients of variation (CY's) for cadmium, copper, selenium and zinc from pooled seminal plasma were found to be 8%, 5% , 4% and 0.5% at a mean (SD) concentration of 0.48 (0.04), 147 (7 .6), 53 (2. 1) and 122,900 (700) μg/ℓ, (n = 10), respectively.

Between-run CV's were determined to be 4% , 7%, 5% and 7% at a mean (SD) concentration of 2.4 (0.1), 147 (10. 1), 67.7 (3.4) and 115,800 (8300) μg/ℓ, (n = 10), respectively .

The observed mean (SD) of seminal plasma cadmium, copper, selenium and zinc concentrations from twenty-nine normospermic men were found to be 1. 19 (0. 71), 87.7 (54.5 ), 66.2 (27.5 ) and 135,100 (71,300) μg/ℓ.

Human seminal plasma cadmium, copper, selenium and zinc concentrations in one hundred and ten specimens obtained from patients undergoing studies for infertility were determined using polarized Zeeman-effect atomic absorption spectroscopy.

The possible relationships between seminal plasma zinc, copper, selenium and cadmium concentrations and the usual laboratory indices of sperm quality were investigated. In addition, the possible effects of smoking habits, vitamin and mineral supplementation, the history of reproductive tract, and the presence of Ureaplasma urealyticum in each specimen on seminal plasma zinc, copper, selenium and cadmium concentrations were studied. Finally, the interactions among the four mineral s were determined.

For the entire group of one hundred and ten infertile patients, a significantly lower seminal plasma zinc concentration was found in smokers, 98,100 (63,000) μg/ℓ, (n = 50), than in nonsmokers, 148,900 (64,00) μg/ℓ, (n = 44), (t = 3.8, p = 0.01). Patients with prostatic infections had lower metal concentrations than individuals with no history of infection. Post-vasectomy patients had similar seminal plasma metal concentrations as those from normospermic men. In split ejaculates, the highest metal concentrations were observed in the first two fractions with lower concentrations in the latter fractions. The presence of Ureaplasma urealyticum, history of mumps or veneral disease, or vitamin and mineral supplementation did not significantly affect the concentrations of trace minerals in seminal plasma. Finally, seminal plasma trace metal analyses of six normospermic fertile men had higher zinc and copper concentrations than others.

When the Spearman rank correlation test was applied, zinc concentrations correlated significantly and positively with sperm count (r = 0.3833, p = 0.005) and morphology (r = 0.2848, p = 0.042) in nonsmokers, with motility (r = 0.3420, p = 0.003) in abnormospermic group. Selenium concentrations correlated positively and significantly with both sperm count (r = 0.3691, p = 0.010) and morphology (r 0.3789, p = 0.012) in nonsmokers, and negatively with morphology (r =— 0.5539, p = 0.001) in smokers. Zinc concentrations correlated positively and significantly with copper and selenium concentrations in both smokers (r = 0.3113, p = 0.015, Zn vs Cu; r = 0.3373, p = 0.014, Zn vs Se), and nonsmokers (r = 0.3946, p = 0.004, Zn vs Cu, r = 0.3056, p = 0.029, Zn vs Se), and with cadmium in nonsmokers (r = 0.4618, p = 0.018) only . Cadmium correlated positively and significantly with both copper (r = 0.4285, p = 0.013) and selenium (r = 0.4042, p = 0.023) in smokers only.

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DOI

10.25777/t09e-mp75

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