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Y Chromosome deletions and male infertility

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  03 June 2009

D M de Kretser*
Affiliation:
Institute of Reproduction and Development, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
C Mallidis
Affiliation:
Institute of Reproduction and Development, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
K Ma
Affiliation:
Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Molecular Medicine, Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, USA
S Bhasin
Affiliation:
Division of Endocrinology, Metabolism and Molecular Medicine, Charles Drew University of Medicine and Science, Los Angeles, USA
*
Institute of Reproduction and Development, Monash University, Monash Medical Centre, 246 Clayton Rd, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia.

Extract

Approximately one in ten couples experience infertility, and in about 40% of these infertile unions there are abnormalities in the fertility of the male partner. The clinical management of these infertile men is less than satisfactory because in 40% of such patients the cause of the abnormalities of sperm production and quality is unknown. The possibility that genetic disorders may account for a proportion of these disturbances of sperm production has been raised. It is well recognized that chromosomal abnormalities such as Klinefelter's syndrome cause azoospermia and that gene defects are the basis of testicular feminization, Kallman's syndrome and Reifenstein's syndrome. With the explosion in our knowledge of the human genome, the possibility exists that other genetic disorders may form the basis of other sperma-togenic abnormalities. The past decade has witnessed the accumulation of evidence linking abnormalities of the Y chromosome with disturbances in sperm production and these observations form the basis of this review.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1997

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