Background: Male senescence may affect testicular function, sperm indices and generation of high levels of oxidants and apoptosis.
Objective: This study evaluates the effect of male age on the expression of some apoptosis and oxidative stress markers in seminal fluid of males investigated for infertility in a tertiary health institution in Nigeria.
Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study, 122 men aged 20-60 yr who were investigated for infertility and were stratified according to age into four groups. Seminal plasma caspase 3, cytochrome C, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) were assayed by ELISA technique, while manual semen analysis was performed according to WHO standard.
Results: Seminal caspase 3, and cytochrome C activity increased while TAC and sperm indices decreased with increasing age. Cytochrome C (r=0.288; p=0.002) and caspase 3 (r=0.250; p=0.05) correlated significantly with age in normospermia while cytochrome C (r=0.314; p=0.02), caspase 3 (r=0.268; p=0.05), TAC (r=-0.342; p=0.01) and morphology percentage (r=-0.414; p=0.002) correlated with age in oligospermic infertile males.
Conclusion: The measured apoptotic markers increased with increasing age while TAC and sperm indices decreased with increasing age of subjects evaluated. Although the levels of measured apoptosis and oxidative stress markers correlated with age in normozospermia, the effect on sperm indices was severe among oligospermia compare to normozospermia. Therefore, these markers may be assayed in aged men attending fertility clinics.
Keywords: Apoptosis; Caspase 3; Cytochrome C; Male infertility.