Nicotine and Infertility

Nicotine intake is associated with reduced fertility, but the pathogenetic mechanisms remain unclear. However, oxidative stress has been considered the leading cause of male infertility. In a recent study, nicotine was administered to male rats in order to study its effect on oxidative stress and the antioxidant system in testicular tissues.

The results of the experiments showed a significant reduction in the antioxidant enzyme systems of the testes such as glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, catalase, and superoxide dismutase. At the same time, a significant increase in lipid peroxidation and in the level of nitrogen oxides in the testes of experimental animals was observed, compared with the control group (which did not receive nicotine).

This experiment showed that nicotine administration is associated with a decrease in testicular antioxidant defense and with an increase in lipid peroxidation, which could be a pathogenetic mechanism by which nicotine induces infertility.

Diagnostiki Athinon provides a wide range of services for the accurate diagnosis of male infertility. Diagnostiki Athinon, as a clinical diagnostic laboratory, is able to provide all the laboratory tests required in order to fully investigate male infertility. Thus, in addition to medical analysis, the laboratory can and does provide specialized andrology tests such as the hypoosmotic swelling test of sperm, the DNA fragmentation test, the determination of oxygen free radicals, and the evaluation of the total antioxidant capacity of seminal plasma. The medical history in combination with the results of these tests allows the creation of a complete picture of the health state of the patient and the evaluation of the male factor in the infertility of the couple.