Genitourinary microorganisms could have detrimental effects on male fertility owing to increased production of reactive oxygen species and generation of oxidative stress, which can lead to sperm DNA damage. Diagnostic genitourinary microorganism screening could help in understanding the reasons for infertility and refine infertility diagnosis and treatment.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals
Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription
$29.99 / 30 days
cancel any time
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 12 print issues and online access
$209.00 per year
only $17.42 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
References
Altmäe, S., Franasiak, J. M. & Mändar, R. The seminal microbiome in health and disease. Nat. Rev. Urol. 16, 703–721 (2019).
Agarwal, A. et al. Male oxidative stress infertility (MOSI): proposed terminology and clinical practice guidelines for management of idiopathic male infertility. World J. Mens Health 37, 296–312 (2019).
Barati, E., Nikzad, H. & Karimian, M. Oxidative stress and male infertility: current knowledge of pathophysiology and role of antioxidant therapy in disease management. Cell. Mol. Life Sci. 77, 93–113 (2020).
Ho, C. L. T. et al. The relationship between genitourinary microorganisms and oxidative stress, sperm DNA fragmentation and semen parameters in infertile men. Andrologia https://doi.org/10.1111/and.14322 (2021).
Farahani, L. et al. The semen microbiome and its impact on sperm function and male fertility: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Andrology 9, 115–144 (2021).
Lundy, S. D. et al. The microbiome of the infertile male. Curr. Opin. Urol. 30, 355–362 (2020).
Monteiro, C. et al. Characterization of microbiota in male infertility cases uncovers differences in seminal hyperviscosity and oligoasthenoteratozoospermia possibly correlated with increased prevalence of infectious bacteria. Am. J. Reprod. Immunol. 79, e12838 (2018).
Mändar, R. et al. Complementary seminovaginal microbiome in couples. Res. Microbiol. 166, 440–447 (2015).
Štšepetova, J. et al. The complex microbiome from native semen to embryo culture environment in human in vitro fertilization procedure. Reprod. Biol. Endocrinol. 18, 3 (2020).
Molina, N. M. et al. New opportunities for endometrial health by modifying uterine microbial composition: present or future? Biomolecules 10, 593 (2020).
Acknowledgements
The authors thank R. Mändar from the University of Tartu for the stimulating discussion and contribution in the manuscript preparation. They are very grateful to A. Sola-Leyva from the University of Granada for his great input in figure preparation. S.A. is supported by the Spanish Ministry of Economy, Industry and Competitiveness (MINECO) and European Regional Development Fund (FEDER): grants RYC-2016-21199 and ENDORE SAF2017-87526-R; Programa Operativo FEDER Andalucía (B-CTS-500-UGR18 and A-CTS-614-UGR20); and the Junta de Andalucía (PAIDI P20_00158).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Competing interests
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Related links
EMMA and ALICE: https://www.igenomix.com/
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Altmäe, S., Kullisaar, T. Genitourinary microbial screening for all infertile men?. Nat Rev Urol 19, 199–200 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-022-00573-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41585-022-00573-6