| Semen Quality and Reproductive Health of Young Czech Men Exposed to Seasonal Air Pollution Sherry G. Selevan,1 Libor Borkovec,2 Valerie L. Slott,3 Zdena Zudová,4 Jirí Rubes,2 Donald P. Evenson,5 and
Sally D. Perreault6 1U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, USA
2Veterinary Research Institute, Brno, Czech Republic
3Parexel, Durham, North Carolina, USA
4Institute of Hygiene, Brno, Czech Republic
5South Dakota State University, Brookings, South Dakota, USA
6U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA Abstract
This study of male reproductive health in the Czech Republic resulted from community concern about potential adverse effects of air pollution. We compared young men (18 years of age) living in Teplice, a highly industrialized district with seasonally elevated levels of air pollution, to those from Prachatice, a rural district with relatively clean air. Surveys were scheduled for either late winter, after the season of higher air pollution, or at the end of summer, when pollution was low. Participation included a physical examination, donation of a semen sample, and completion of a questionnaire on health, personal habits, and exposure to solvents and metals through work or hobby. Analysis of data from 408 volunteers showed that the men from Teplice and Prachatice were similar in physical characteristics, personal habits, and work- or hobby-related exposures. Sixty-six percent (272) of these men donated a single semen sample for routine semen analysis, computer-aided sperm motion analysis, and sperm chromatin structure assay. The mean (median) sperm concentration and sperm count were 61.2 (44.0) million/mL semen and 113.3 (81.5) million, respectively, and were not associated with district of residence or period of elevated air pollution. However, periods of elevated air pollution in Teplice were significantly associated with decrements in other semen measures including proportionately fewer motile sperm, proportionately fewer sperm with normal morphology or normal head shape, and proportionately more sperm with abnormal chromatin. These results suggest that young men may experience alterations in sperm quality after exposure to periods of elevated air pollution, without changes in sperm numbers. Key words: air pollution, epidemiology, human, semen, sperm chromatin, sperm count, sperm morphology, sperm motility. Environ Health Perspect 108:887-894 (2000) . [Online 2 August 2000] http://ehpnet1.niehs.nih.gov/docs/2000/108p887-894selevan/ abstract.html Address correspondence to S.G. Selevan, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (8623D) , Washington, DC 20460, USA. Telephone:(202) 564-3312. Fax: (202) 565-0078. E-mail: selevan.sherry@epa.gov We thank the many people who contributed to the success of this project including F. Kote(breve) s(breve) ovec, R. S(breve) rám, and J. Lewtas for programmatic support ; I. Benes(breve) and R. Stevens for the air pollution data ; R. Hajnová for medical examinations ; the staff of the Teplice and Prachatice Hygiene Stations for subject recruitment ; and U.S. EPA and Czech laboratory technicians. We also thank S. Schrader, D. Katz, E. Clegg, and J. Ratcliffe for their advice regarding study design and technical aspects of semen analysis ; and M. Leixner for air pollution data management. This study was supported by the Czech Ministry of the Environment (Teplice Program) , the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Agency for International Development, and grants from CEC (PHARE II, EC/HEA/18/CZ) , and the U.S. EPA [R820968 (DPE) and CR820076]. This manuscript has been reviewed in accordance with U.S. EPA policy, and approved for publication. Approval does not signify that the contents necessarily reflect the views and policies of the U.S. EPA. Received 27 October 1999 ; accepted 22 January 2000.
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