Ann Infertil Reprod Endocrinol | Volume 1, Issue 1 | Research Article | Open Access
Sanjeevani Negi, Harpreet Vander, Aditi Chauhan, Kalpana Rana and Vijay Prabha*
Department of Microbiology, Punjab University, India
*Correspondance to: Vijay Prabha
Fulltext PDFVarious studies have shown Pseudomonas aeruginosa to be one of the most prevalent organisms involved in causing infertility in males and females. To explore the possible mechanism underlying this process, standard strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa (MTCC 3542) was employed and it was found to cause complete immobilization of mouse spermatozoa in vitro. Further, only cell-free supernatant showed immobilization activity, indicating that the sperm immobilization factor might be released extracellular by the organism, as no activity was observed with the washed cells. This bioactive molecule from the supernatant was precipitated out with ammonium sulphate at the saturation of 60% to 80% and purified by gel permeation chromatography followed by ion exchange chromatography. The Sperm Immobilization Factor (SIF) was found to be a ~16 kDa protein. SIF at a concentration of 50 μg was able to cause 100% immobilization of mouse spermatozoa within 30 min of incubation at 37ºC, whereas a concentration of 65 μg resulted in instant loss of viability of mouse spermatozoa and a total loss of Mg++ ATPase activity was observed at a concentration of 100 µg. Further, in vivo studies showed that a single intravaginal application of SIF (10 μg) before mating completely prevented conception in female mice. Also, no pregnancy related changes were observed from histological examination in the reproductive organs (i.e. ovary and uterus) of female mice receiving 10 µg of SIF in comparison to female mice receiving PBS. Thus, SIF with its spermicidal activity could be developed as a potent vaginal contraceptive for future use.
Spermatozoa; Pseudomonas aeruginosa; Immobilization; Fertility outcome
Negi S, Vander H, Chauhan A, Rana K, Prabha V. Microbial Sperm Immobilization Factor from Pseudomonas aeruginosa as a Contraceptive Agent: An Experimental Study. Ann Infert Rep Endocrin. 2018;1(1):1007.