Biochemical Profiling of Seminal Plasma in Infertile Males Attending a Reproductive Health Clinic in Lagos State

Male infertility accounts for approximately half of all infertility cases in Nigeria, and the biochemical microenvironment of seminal plasma plays a critical role in sperm function and fertilization capacity. This study comprehensively profiles seminal plasma biochemical parameters in infertile males compared to fertile controls attending a reproductive health clinic in Lagos. Eighty confirmed infertile males classified as azoospermic, severely oligospermic, or normospermic with poor motility, and forty fertile controls with documented pregnancies within two years, were recruited at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital. Semen analysis was performed according to WHO 2021 criteria. Seminal plasma was separated and biochemical analysis performed for fructose (as Sertoli cell marker), zinc (prostate marker), citric acid (prostatic function), total antioxidant capacity, MDA, SOD activity, catalase, GPx, IL-6, IL-8, TNF-alpha, and neutral alpha-glucosidase (epididymal marker). Chromatin integrity was assessed by sperm DNA fragmentation index using terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick end labelling. Results show significantly lower fructose, zinc, citric acid, neutral alpha-glucosidase, and total antioxidant capacity in infertile males compared to fertile controls. MDA was significantly elevated, and pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-alpha were markedly higher in infertile men. DNA fragmentation index was significantly elevated in azoospermic and severely oligospermic groups. Multivariate analysis identified MDA, total antioxidant capacity, and DNA fragmentation index as the strongest independent biochemical discriminators of infertility. These findings support a role for oxidative stress and inflammation in male factor infertility pathogenesis. Keywords: seminal plasma biochemistry, male infertility, oxidative stress, sperm DNA fragmentation, Lagos State.