COVID-19 can reduce male fertility.
Studies have shown that the novel coronavirus can cause damage to multiple organs and increase the risk of long-term health problems. Many people who have recovered from COVID-19 experience long-term symptoms, such as fatigue, shortness of breath, cough, body ache, brain fog or heart problems. Increasing evidence also suggests that SARS-CoV-2 infection can impair fertility in men.
Now, Indian researchers have suggested that even mild or moderate COVID-19 infection could alter the levels of proteins related to male reproductive function, indicating that it can reduce male fertility. The virus has also been detected in male reproductive organs.
The research team included Firuza Parikh and Rajesh Parikh at Jaslok Hospital, and Sanjeeva Srivastava at the Indian Institute of Technology. The findings of their pilot study was reported in ACS Omega.
For the study, the researchers analyzed semen samples from 10 healthy men and 17 men who had recently recovered from COVID-19. The participants were aged between 20 and 45, and none of them had a prior history of infertility.
They found that men who had recovered from COVID-19 had significantly reduced sperm count and motility, and fewer normally shaped sperm, compared to those who hadn't had COVID-19.
Then the researchers analyzed semen proteins using liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry and found changes in the levels of proteins related to reproductive function.
In COVID-19-recovered men, 27 proteins were detected at higher levels and 21 proteins at lower levels, in comparison to the control group. Particularly, they researchers found two of the fertility-related proteins, semenogelin 1 and prosaposin, at less than half their levels in the semen of the COVID-19-recovered group than in the semen of controls.
Based on these findings, the researchers suggested that SARS-CoV-2 has direct or indirect effects on male reproductive health that linger after recovery.
However, they underscored the need for larger studies to confirm these findings.
Last year, a study led by Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) investigators had also suggested that men infected with COVID-19 may experience short-term reduced fertility. The study published in the American Journal of Epidemiology, however, found no effect of vaccination on fertility in both men and women.
Another study from the Justus Liebig University Giessen, in Hesse, Germany, and published in the journal Reproduction stated that severe COVID-19 might impact sperm quality, thus possibly impact male fertility. They found a significant increase in inflammation in sperm cells in men with COVID-19, compared to healthy men without COVID-19.
These, and many more studies from world over have shown that SARS-CoV virus can attach to and infect the testicular and penile tissues of men. Covid-19 infection has also been linked to reduced sperm counts and reduced erectile function.
Not only COVID-19 infection, but multiple factors can have an effect on sperm health and reduce fertility in men. These include obesity, stress, unhealthy dietary habits, lack of physical activity, mental health issues, diabetes, heart diseases and other medical conditions, radiations from devices, pesticides, etc.
