Detection and Prevalence of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) in Seminal Plasma and/or on Sperm in Men Undergoing Treatment With IVF/ICSI.

This observational study aims to investigate the presence of HPV DNA in semen samples from men undergoing in vitro fertilization (IVF) or intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) treatment. It focuses on understanding the impact of HPV on male fertility and embryo development following IVF/ICSI. The primary goal is to determine the prevalence of HPV-positive (HPV+) semen samples among men seeking infertility treatment with IVF/ICSI. Additionally, the study aims to compare semen characteristics between HPV-positive and HPV-negative (HPV-) samples and assess the embryological outcomes after IVF/ICSI in these two groups. Participants in this study will include men receiving IVF/ICSI treatment and providing fresh ejaculated sperm at Sahlgrenska University Hospital in Gothenburg, Sweden, over one year. Those undergoing treatments with surgically extracted sperm, sperm freezing for fertility preservation, or planning treatments involving preimplantation genetic testing or egg donation will be excluded. The study will involve analyzing HPV DNA in semen samples through PCR, utilizing the most effective method for HPV DNA detection previously identified in a pilot study. Sperm samples collected during infertility investigations and IVF/ICSI treatments will undergo gradient centrifugation to separate different components. A portion of the sperm sample will be preserved for PCR analysis to detect HPV DNA, while the rest will be used for IVF/ICSI procedures. The results from the PCR analyses will be correlated with semen characteristics and the outcomes of IVF/ICSI treatment. Furthermore, the samples will be stored for potential future analyses related to HPV-related biomarkers for up to 5 years at Biobank.