Protective association of -308G/A transition in TNFa gene with azoospermia

Background: Male infertility is a multifactorial problem in which anatomic, environmental, lifestyle, physiological and genetic factors can be influential. Genetic polymorphisms in some cytokines gene families including tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFa) may be associated with susceptibility of male infertility. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) are studied in the promoter region of TNFa such as -1031T/C, -863C/A, -857C/T, -575G/A, -376G/A, -244G/A, -238G/A, and -308G/A. Among these variations, the -308G/A polymorphism could affect the male infertility risk.Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association of -376G/A in TNFa gene with idiopathic male infertility in an Iranian population. Materials and Methods: In a case-control study, 200 subjects including 100 fertile men and 100 infertile men were enrolled. After blood samples collection, genomic DNA was extracted and -376G/A genotyping was performed by PCR-RFLP method.Results: Our data revealed that there is no significant association between -308G/A transition and male infertility in overall analysis. However, we found a significant association between -308G/A polymorphism and decreased risk of azoospermia (OR=0.1344, 95% CI=0.0207 to 0.8725, p=0.0355).Conclusion: Our results suggest that the -308G/A polymorphism may be a protective factor against azoospermia.

Keywords:

Male infertility , Azoospermia , Tumor necrosis factor alpha , Genetic polymorphism