Evaluation of the Combination Effects of Chlorogenic Acid and Lipoic Acid on the Sperm Parameters of Patients with Oligoasthenozoospermia after Freeze-thaw Process

 Cryopreservation by various mechanisms, such as the induction of oxidative, osmotic, and temperature stress, causes a reduction in sperm quality after the freeze-thaw process. This study aimed to investigate the effect of the simultaneous addition of chlorogenic acid and lipoic acid as an antioxidant supplement to sperm freezing medium in patients with oligoasthenospermia.

 Sperm samples from patients with oligoasthenozoospermia were divided into five groups as follows: fresh sample (pre-frozen semen), control (sperm freezing medium without supplements), CGA group (sperm freezing medium with 100 µM chlorogenic acid), ALA group (sperm freezing medium with 200 µM lipoic acid) and CGA+ALA group (sperm freezing medium with chlorogenic acid and lipoic acid). Total mobility, viability rate (eosin-nigrosin staining) and DNA fragmentation index (Halo test) were assessed before and after freeze-thawing.

 In the control group, there was a decrease in total sperm motility and viability and an increase in DFI. Freezing sperm in the CGA, ALA, and CGA+ALA groups was associated with a significant increase in viability and total sperm motility after thawing. The results of the Halo test also showed that the increase in sperm DFI caused by the freeze-thaw process was less in all three experimental groups than in the control group, and this decrease was statistically significant (P<0.05).

 The simultaneous addition of chlorogenic acid and lipoic acid to the sperm freezing medium can improve the quality of sperm samples after the freeze-thaw process in terms of mobility, viability, and DNA fragmentation, thus increasing the efficiency of this technique in the treatment of male infertility.