Paul, Raiza, Romero, Alejandro, Moltó Berenguer, Julia, Ortuño García, Nuria, Aizpurua, Jon, Gómez-Torres, María José
Associations of paternal serum dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyl concentrations on IVF success: A pilot study
Environmental Research. 2022, 206: 112248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envres.2021.112248
URI: http://hdl.handle.net/10045/118835
DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112248
ISSN: 0013-9351 (Print)
Abstract: 
Dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (DL-PCBs) are environmental pollutants that have been associated with impaired semen quality. However, research on the potential impact of paternal exposure to DL-PCBs and the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes are limited. We examine the relationship between serum DL-PCB concentrations and IVF outcomes among 42 males seeking fertility treatment. Concentrations of 12 serum DL-PCBs were analyzed by high-resolution gas chromatography coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry. Modified Poisson regressions, adjusted for confounders, were used to assess bivariate associations and to estimate risk ratios (RRs) between DL-PCBs and binary IVF outcomes. The median concentration (25th-75th percentiles) of the sum of the 12 DL-PCBs (∑DL-PCBs) obtained for the patients was 5.42 (3.78–7.78) ng/g lipid. No statistically significant association between DL-PCB levels and embryo quality was found. However, men with high serum PCB-77 concentrations present more probability of high-quality embryos (RR: 0.292; 95% CI: 0.090–0.942), whereas the opposite trend is observed for men with lower serum levels of PCB-156 (RR: 7.960; 95% CI: 1.020–62.100), who present increased odds of high-quality embryos. Serum concentrations of PCB-126 and PCB-114 were associated with decreased implantation rates (p < 0.05). Moreover, PCB-77 and ∑non-ortho PCBs were significantly associated with a lower likelihood of clinical pregnancy (p < 0.05). A lower likelihood of live birth was associated with higher levels of PCB-77, PCB-105, PCB-118, and recording significant differences for ∑non-ortho PCBs, ∑mono-ortho PCBs, and ∑DL-PCBs (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that paternal DL-PCB exposure before conception may be related to pregnancy endpoints. However, DL-PCB measurement were limited to male partners. Therefore, we propose that future studies with larger population sizes should include both maternal and paternal factors.
Keywords:Dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls, IVF, Embryo quality, Implantation, Clinical pregnancy, Live birth
Elsevier
info:eu-repo/semantics/article