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Funding This study was supported by the National Natural Science Founda- tion of China (Grant No. 82071649) and the Key Scientific Research Projects of Higher Education Institutions in Henan Province (Grant No. 22A320025) .

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June 16, 2024
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Relationship of environmental exposure temperature and temperature extremes on sperm DNA fragmentation index in men with different BMI values and the indirect effect of DNA fragmentation index on semen parameters

Publicated to:Science Of The Total Environment. 916 170292- - 2024-01-28 916(), DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170292

Authors: Wang, Chen; Yu, Qiwei; Chu, Ting; Wang, Fang; Dong, Fangli; Xin, Hang; Wang, Di; Liu, Yaping; Zhai, Jun

Affiliations

Beijing Normal Univ, Fac Geog Sci, Beijing, Peoples R China - Author
Zhengzhou Univ, Ctr Reprod Med, Affiliated Hosp 1, Zhengzhou 450000, Henan, Peoples R China - Author
Zhengzhou Univ, Henan Key Lab Reprod & Genet, Affiliated Hosp 1, Zhengzhou, Peoples R China - Author
Zhengzhou Univ, Henan Prov Obstetr & Gynecol Dis Reprod Med Clin R, Affiliated Hosp 1, Zhengzhou 450000, Henan, Peoples R China - Author
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Abstract

Prior studies have established a significant correlation between the DNA fragmentation index (DFI) and infertility. Additionally, certain investigations suggest that environmental exposure may serve as an etiological factor impacting semen quality. This study aimed to explore the impact of season, ambient temperature, and weather extremes on the DFI of sperm, along with other relevant parameters. Furthermore, it sought to assess how ambient temperature affects the DFI of sperm and other semen parameters in populations with varying BMI values. Additionally, the study analyzed the transient indirect effect of DFI on sperm parameters. This retrospective study analyzed semen samples from 11,877 men, selected based on female factor considerations, spanning from January 2016 to December 2021. Participants were grouped according to the season of semen collection. The results showed that samples collected in summer had a lower semen volume and sperm motility, while those collected in autumn had a lower DFI. We analyzed the exposure -response ratio between environmental exposure temperature and semen parameters using a generalized additive model. Results showed that the curve of the exposure -response relationship was U-shaped or inverted U-shaped; when the air temperature exposure was below the threshold, for each degree of temperature increase, the total sperm motility, sperm concentration, and progressive motility increased by 0.16 %, 0.29 x 10 (Levine, 1999)/ml and 0.14 %, respectively, while the DFI and inactivity rate decreased by 0.078 % and 0.15 %, respectively. When the air temperature exposure exceeded the threshold, for each degree of temperature increase, the sperm concentration, total sperm motility, semen volume and progressive motility decreased by 0.42 x 10 (Levine, 1999)/ml, 0.11 %, 0.0078 ml and 0.15 %, respectively, while the DFI and inactivity rate increased by 0.13 % and 0.12 %, respectively. Extremely cold weather during spermatogenesis was positively correlated with DFI, and extremely hot weather was negatively correlated with sperm motility. Subgroup analysis revealed that individuals classified as overweight / obese exhibited more pronounced changes in sperm parameters and the DFI in response to variations in environmental exposure temperature compared to those with a normal BMI. In the analysis of the relationship between DFI and sperm parameters, the results showed an inverted U -shape relationship between DFI and semen volume, and a negative correlation between DFI and sperm concentration and sperm motility. And we found that ambient temperature affects sperm parameters through DFI at low as well as average temperatures, whereas at high temperatures this indirect effect is no longer present.

Keywords

Age-related-changesBody mass indexDna fragmentation indexEnvironmental temperatureHead shapeIncreaseInstantaneous indirect effecMale-infertilityMortalityMotilityObesityQualityScrotal temperatureSeasonal-variationSperm motilityStres

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal Science Of The Total Environment due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2024 there are still no calculated indicators, but in 2023, it was in position 39/374, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Environmental Sciences. Notably, the journal is positioned above the 90th percentile.

Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2025-09-28:

  • The use, from an academic perspective evidenced by the Altmetric agency indicator referring to aggregations made by the personal bibliographic manager Mendeley, gives us a total of: 5.
  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 5 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

  • The Total Score from Altmetric: 1.
  • The number of mentions on the social network X (formerly Twitter): 1 (Altmetric).

Leadership analysis of institutional authors

This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: China.