The Effects of Autologous Platelet-rich Plasma Supplement During Sperm Cryopreservation on Post-cryopreserved Sperm Quality

Sperm cryopreservation is an essential procedure for male fertility in certain situations, like cancer, vasectomy or other obstructive surgeries, autoimmunity diseases, immunosuppressive therapeutic strategies, or when the male partner is incapable of providing sufficient spermatozoa on the day of egg retrieval. Semen cryopreservation is mainly associated with decreased viability, motility, and DNA damage of spermatozoa due to the osmotic and mechanical stresses attributed to the freezing-thaw- ing process. Sperm cryodamage mainly originates from osmotic changes, cold shock, intracellular ice crystal formation, and oxidative stress. Based on this, some protective strategies have been proposed and developed, even the addition of cryoprotectants. Recently, Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is becoming very popular in medicine. The therapeutic effect of platelets is related to alpha granule contents. A study showed that PRP modulates ROS toxicity through a different mechanism. VEGF detoxify oxidative damage via activation of the nuclear factor (erythroid- derived 2)-like2 (Nrf2) pathway. Oxidative stress modulation and apoptosis inhibition both have an essential role during the cryopreservation process. In this case, it raises the question of whether PRP can improve the sperm quality against freeze-thawing-induced damage. Therefore, the present study aimed to examine different concentrations of PRP on frozen-thawed sperm parameters of vitality, morphology, motility and DNA fragmentation