Increasing Prevalence of Male Infertility and Stress Factors : An Overview

Infertility is a social problem adding to the woes of marital life. Sex is the most powerful drive and instinct of all living beings including human. Infertility may be due decrease in number of sperms, absence of sperms or increase in abnormal form of sperms in male semen and the failure of the sperm to move with sufficient vigour towards ovum. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are responsible for infertility. These ROS have beneficial as well as detrimental effect on sperm functions, depending on the nature and the concentration of the ROS involved. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is a main toxic ROS for human spermatozoa, in low concentration, causes sperm immobilization. High concentration of H2O2 induces lipid peroxidation, which causes cell death. On the other hand, the superoxide anion (O2-) appears to play an important role in the process of sperm hyperactivity and capacitation.