Sperm telomere length: Diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in male infertility (Review)

Abstract

Telomere length is an important biomarker in a number of diseases, including male infertility. A decreased telomere length has been reported in several diseases and telomere shortening may occur due to aging, decreased telomerase activity, oxidative stress or cell division. In recent years, several studies have indicated that males with infertility have a shorter sperm telomere length than fertile males. Sperm telomere shortening is associated with male infertility through several mechanisms, including the apoptosis of spermatozoa, decreased motility, low sperm count, incorrect chromosomal pairing and movement during meiosis, and failed fertilization. The aim of this review was to compile current findings on sperm telomere length and discuss findings to compare sperm from infertile males with that of fertile males. Several studies reported shortening of sperm telomeres associated with infertility. Thus, sperm telomere length can be used as biomarker for the diagnosis and prognosis of male infertility, since fertile males have longer telomeres and the length decreases with age. However, there is no specific telomere length that is set as standard/recommended length.