Evaluation of atorvastatin efficacy and toxicity on spermatozoa, accessory glands and gonadal hormones of healthy men: a pilot prospective clinical trial

Reproductive Biology and Endocrinology

Igor Tauveron⁷  Laurent Janny²  Genevieve Grizard³  Joel Drevet⁴  Anne-Sophie Gremeau³  Geoffroy Marceau⁵  Bruno Pereira⁶  Gerald Gouby¹  Salwan Maqdasy⁷  Benoit Sion⁴  Florence Brugnon²  Hanae Pons-Rejraji² 

[1] CHU de Clermont-Ferrand, Délégation à la Recherche Clinique et à l’Innovation (DRCI), F-63003 Clermont-Ferrand, France;GReD, UMR CNRS 6293 INSERM U1103, Clermont Université, 63000 Clermont-Ferrand, France;CHU Clermont Ferrand, Laboratoire de BDR: AMP-CECOS, F-63003 Clermont-Ferrand, France;Pharmacologie Fondamentale et Clinique de la Douleur, France Inserm, U 1107, Neuro-Dol, Clermont Université, Université d’Auvergne, F-63001 Clermont-Ferrand, France;CHU Clermont-Ferrand, Laboratoire de Biochimie, F-63003 Clermont-Ferrand, France;CHU Clermont-Ferrand, Biostatistics unit, DRCI, Clermont-Ferrand, France;CHU Clermont-Ferrand, Service d’Endocrinologie-Diabétologie, F-63003 Clermont-Ferrand, France

关键词: Healthy men;    Normozoospermic;    Normocholesterolemic;    Testosterone;    Gonadotropins;    Cholesterol;    Seminal fluid;    Human Spermatozoa;    Atorvastatin;   

Others  :  1139790
DOI  :  10.1186/1477-7827-12-65

 received in 2014-04-01, accepted in 2014-07-07,  发布年份 2014

【 摘 要 】

Background

Recommendations for cardiovascular disease prevention advocate lowering both cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol systemic levels, notably by statin intake. However, statins are the subject of questions concerning their impact on male fertility. This study aimed to evaluate, by a prospective pilot assay, the efficacy and the toxicity of a decrease of cholesterol blood levels, induced by atorvastatin on semen quality and sexual hormone levels of healthy, normocholesterolaemic and normozoospermic men.

Methods

Atorvastatin (10 mg daily) was administrated orally during 5 months to 17 men with normal plasma lipid and standard semen parameters. Spermatozoa parameters, accessory gland markers, semen lipid levels and blood levels of gonadal hormones were assayed before statin intake, during the treatment, and 3 months after its withdrawal.

Results

Atorvastatin treatment significantly decreased circulating low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and total cholesterol concentrations by 42% and 24% (p < 0.0001) respectively, and reached the efficacy objective of the protocol. During atorvastatin therapy and/or 3 months after its withdrawal numerous semen parameters were significantly modified, such as total number of spermatozoa (-31%, p < 0.05), vitality (-9.5%, p < 0.05), total motility (+7.5%, p < 0.05), morphology (head, neck and midpiece abnormalities, p < 0.05), and the kinetics of acrosome reaction (p < 0.05). Seminal concentrations of acid phosphatases (p < 0.01), α-glucosidase (p < 0.05) and L-carnitine (p < 0.05) were also decreased during the therapy, indicating an alteration of prostatic and epididymal functions. Moreover, we measured at least one altered semen parameter in 35% of the subjects during atorvastatin treatment, and in 65% of the subjects after withdrawal, which led us to consider that atorvastatin is unsafe in the context of our study.

Conclusions

Our results show for the first time that atorvastatin significantly affects the sperm parameters and the seminal fluid composition of healthy men.

Trial registration

ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02094313.

【 授权许可】

   
2014 Pons-Rejraji et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd.

【 图 表 】

Figure 1.

Figure 2.

Figure 3.

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