An Improved Neutral a-Glucosidase Assay for Assessment of Epididymal Function—Validation and Comparison to the WHO Method

Abstract

Neutral a-glucosidase (NAG) activity in human seminal plasma is an important indicator for epididymis functionality. In the present study, the classic World Health Organization (WHO) method has been adapted to enhance assay robustness. Changes include modified enzyme reaction buffer composition and usage of an alternative enzyme inhibitor for background correction (glucose instead of castanospermine). Both methods have been tested in parallel on 144 semen samples, obtained from 94 patients/donors and 50 vasectomized men (negative control), respectively. Passing-Bablok regression analysis demonstrated equal assay performance. In terms of assay validation, analytical specificity, detection limit, measuring range, precision, and cut-off values have been calculated. These data confirm that the adapted method is a reliable, improved tool for NAG analysis in human semen.