ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Reproduction
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2025.1487650
Associations between seminal plasma osteopontin level and sperm motility in infertile men with asthenozoospermia
Provisionally accepted
- 1First Affiliated Hospital, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, Liaoning Province, China
- 2Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, Dalian, China
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Purpose Male infertility, a complex multifactorial condition, is frequently caused by asthenozoospermia (AZS). Although osteopontin (OPN) has been implicated in mammalian reproduction, its specific effects on sperm motility and fertility are not well understood. This study investigates the relationships between seminal plasma OPN levels and sperm parameters in cases of male infertility. Methods A total of 158 semen samples were analyzed, comprising 78 from infertile men with AZS and 80 from healthy fertile controls. OPN concentrations in seminal plasma were measured using the ELISA method. Additionally, we assessed the in vitro effect of OPN on sperm motility parameters in AZS patients and controls.Significantly lower OPN concentrations were observed in the seminal plasma of infertile men with AZS compared to healthy controls (P<0.0001). OPN levels discriminated between the groups, with an area under the curve of 0.793. Additionally, in vitro OPN treatment significantly improved sperm motility in the AZS group, enhancing progressive and total motility, as well as kinematic parameters in a concentration-dependent manner.This study established a link between OPN level and sperm motility in infertile individuals with AZS, suggesting the potential of OPN as a biomarker for AZS and as a supplement for assisted reproductive techniques.
Keywords: male infertility, Asthenozoospermia, Osteopontin, Seminal plasma, Sperm Motility
Received: 28 Aug 2024; Accepted: 28 Apr 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zhang, Leng, Liu, Liu, Li and Qin. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Chaoran Li, First Affiliated Hospital, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116011, Liaoning Province, China
Jie Qin, First Affiliated Hospital, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116011, Liaoning Province, China
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