Volume 108, April 2015, Pages 98–104
Highlights
presented at the congress of the European Society for Reproductive
Immunology in Budapest (Hungary), March 29 – April 01, 2014
Cytokines in the male reproductive tract and their role in infertility disorders
- Received 1 September 2014, Revised 27 January 2015, Accepted 17 February 2015, Available online 28 February 2015
Highlights
- •
- The cytokine pattern defines the background of male genital tract inflammation.
- •
- Cytokines are an essential part of the inflammatory effect caused by varicocele.
- •
- There is scarce evidence that cytokines play any role in cryptorchidism.
Abstract
Cell
integration between the immune and reproductive systems is the basis
for normal male reproductive physiology. Cytokines are a part of the
autocrine/paracrine network operating in the male reproductive tract. At
the same time, immunological reactions occurring via cytokines
appear to be both beneficial and/or risk factors for male fertility. As
the cytokines are produced by a whole spectrum of cells in all
compartments of the male genital tract, they can also be involved in a
variety of andrological disorders. The monitoring of cytokines and other
immune factors in seminal plasma may offer a chance to better
understand the mechanisms leading to sub-/infertility. In this review,
we present insights into cytokine interplay in some of the pathological
conditions associated with male reproduction.
Keywords
- Cytokines;
- Oxidative stress;
- Semen inflammation;
- Varicocele;
- Cryptorchidism
- Corresponding
author at: Department of Reproductive Biology and Stem Cells, Institute
of Human Genetics, Polish Academy of Sciences, Strzeszynska 32, 60-479
Poznan, Poland. Tel.:
+48 61 6579 212; fax: +48 61 8233 235.
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