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Pollutants and sperm quality: a systematic review and meta-analysis

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Abstract

Male fertility and semen quality have declined over recent decades. Among other causes, exposure to environmental and occupational pollution has been linked to adverse reproductive outcomes, but effects on male semen quality are still uncertain. Therefore, the aim of the present study was to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to assess current evidence regarding the impact of exposure to tobacco smoke and environmental and occupational pollution on sperm quality in humans. In the meta-analysis, 22 studies are included showing that environmental and occupational pollutants may affect sperm count, volume, concentration, motility, vitality and sperm DNA, and chromatin integrity. All included articles reported significant alterations in at least one of the outcomes studied in association with at least one of the pollutants studied. Considering that sperm quality can be considered a proxy for general health and that pollutants have a dramatic impact on climate change, it would be strongly recommended to better understand the role of pollutants on human, animal, and planetary health.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, 33 Street, Amarat, Khartoum, Sudan

    Damiano Pizzol

  2. Unit of Andrology and Reproductive Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Padova, Padova, Italy

    Carlo Foresta & Andrea Garolla

  3. Clinical and Experimental Medicine PhD Program, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy

    Jacopo Demurtas

  4. The Cambridge Centre for Sport & Exercise Sciences, Anglia Ruskin University, Cambridge, UK

    Mike Trott & Lee Smith

  5. Zerouno Procreazione, Centro di Medicina, Venezia, Italy

    Alessandro Bertoldo

Authors
  1. Damiano Pizzol
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  2. Carlo Foresta
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  3. Andrea Garolla
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  4. Jacopo Demurtas
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  5. Mike Trott
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  6. Alessandro Bertoldo
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  7. Lee Smith
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Contributions

Conceptualisation, D.P. and A.G.; methodology, J.D.; formal analysis, C.F.; data extraction, D.P and M.T.; writing of original draft preparation, A.B., D.P., and A.G.; writing, reviewing, and editing, C.V. and L.S.; supervision, L.S.

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Correspondence to Damiano Pizzol.

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Responsible Editor: Lotfi Aleya

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Pizzol, D., Foresta, C., Garolla, A. et al. Pollutants and sperm quality: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 4095–4103 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-11589-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-020-11589-z

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