Synthetic Antioxidants

Abstract

Male factor infertility is responsible for up to 12% of all infertility issues. Suboptimal semen quality is a common yet poorly understood cause of male infertility. Environmental factors such as oxidative stress induced by reactive oxygen species (ROS) have recently been implicated as contributing to poor semen quality. Causes of increased ROS in men with suboptimal sperm quality are actively being investigated, and multiple options for therapy are under investigation. ROS have been shown to induce cellular injury by a variety of mechanisms, and antioxidants, which scavenge and inactivate ROS, have been shown to protect cells against this damage. There are many forms of antioxidants. Antioxidants are found endogenously in cell signaling pathways, as well as exogenously in fruits and vegetables (natural antioxidants), or as individual isolates in vitamins or dietary supplements (synthetic antioxidants). Here, we seek to update our previously published work on defining synthetic antioxidants and to discuss the cellular mechanisms by which synthetic antioxidants may improve oxidative stress levels and semen quality in men with male factor infertility.