ArticleReproductive sciences (Thousand Oaks, Calif.)2022
Biomarkers of Stress and Male Fertility.
Article in Reproductive sciences (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- Psychological Stress and Male Infertility: Oxidative Stress as the Common Downstream Pathway.Biomedicines · 2026Review
- Male Stress Is Associated with Ovarian and Endometrial Responses in ICSI Cycles: Is Seminal Plasma the Linchpin?International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Perceived stress in relation to testicular function markers among men attending a fertility center.Fertility and sterility · 2025Observational
- Arginine Biosynthesis Mediates Wulingzhi Extract Resistance to Busulfan-Induced Male Reproductive Toxicity.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Stress Biomarkers Transferred Into the Female Reproductive Tract by Seminal Plasma Are Associated with ICSI Outcomes.Reproductive sciences (Thousand Oaks, Calif.) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
12 authors at 11 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
To study if stress, as measured by salivary alpha-amylase and cortisol, negatively impacts male fertility, as measured by semen parameters, pregnancy, and live birth rates. Prospective, cohort study of men enrolled in the Males, Antioxidants, and Infertility (MOXI) trial. One-hundred twelve infertile men provided first-morning salivary and semen samples at baseline. Salivary samples were analyzed for alpha-amylase and cortisol. Couples attempted to conceive naturally (months 1-3) and with clomiphene citrate/intrauterine insemination (months 4-6). The association between stress-related biomarkers and semen parameters including DNA fragmentation was assessed using linear regression models adjusting for male age. Salivary levels were dichotomized at the 80th percentile. Pregnancy/live birth rates in couples in the upper quintile were compared to remaining subjects using chi-square testing. Salivary levels of alpha-amylase were not associated with semen parameters or DNA fragmentation. Salivary cortisol levels were not correlated with DNA fragmentation or normal morphology. For every 1-unit increase in salivary cortisol, total sperm count increased by 13.9 million (95% CI: 2.5, 25.3) and total motile sperm count increased by 9.9 million (95% CI: 3.2-16.6). Couple pregnancy rates and live birth rates did not differ for males in the highest quintile of alpha-amylase (27% and 28%, p = 0.96; 23% and 21%, p = 0.87) or cortisol (40% and 26%, p = 0.22; 35% and 19%, p = 0.12), compared to males with lower values. Physiologic measures of high stress may not harm but actually improve semen parameters among men with male-factor infertility.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.