Decrease of air pollution during lockdown in Tuscany (Italy): An effect on sperm DNA fragmentation?

Abstract

In March 2020, the Italian government imposed a national lockdown which was almost completely removed in June 2020. Due to the abrupt stop of human activities, emissions of air pollutants decreased. Air pollution is an environmental risk factor for noncommunicable disease and mortality. Emerging evidence also suggests a role in male infertility. In this study, we compared sperm DNA fragmentation (sDF) levels and conventional semen parameters between subjects undergoing sDF determination and routine semen analysis in a single Italian centre, during about 6 months before (N = 119) and after lockdown (N = 105). After lockdown, we found an improvement of sperm progressive motility (48.00[38.50–58.00]% vs. 42.00[33.00–53.00]%) and sDF levels (as total: 24.79[18.33–33.97]% vs. 35.02[25.04–45.73]%, p