Expression of miR-378 gene and measuring plasma levels of Q10 in infertile men with normal spermatogenesis pattern

Infertility is one of the most important health-treatment problems in many societies. Recently, much attention has been paid to the role of miRNA in the pathway of spermatogenesis. miR-378 plays an important role in regulating proliferation and differentiation in the spermatogenesis pathway. Q10 is also an antioxidant that plays a role in protecting cells from oxygen free radicals.  Insufficient amounts of coenzyme Q10 can be a major factor in failed spermatogenesis. This study was performed with aim to evaluate the plasma level of coenzyme Q10 and its association with expression of miR-378 gene in infertile men with normal spermatogenesis pattern.     

This case-control study was performed on 45 infertile and 45 healthy individuals as controls. Expression of miR-378 was determined by qRT-PCR and enzyme level was measured by ELISA method. Data was analyzed by SPSS software (version 20) and t-test. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant.

The results of this study indicated that the titres of coenzyme Q10 were significantly lower in the infertility group than the healthy subjects. Also, in infertile individuals, the expression of the miR-378 gene was averagely 1.196 ± 0.020 times of healthy individuals; this increase was not statistically significant (p = 0.45).

In general, the change in coenzyme Q10 significantly reduced in the serum of patients compared to controls. Also, in infertile individuals, the expression of miR-378 increased compared to healthy ones, which was not statistically significant. These findings can be effective in spermatogenesis of male infertility. However, perhaps better results may be achieved by increasing the number of samples.