Author(s)

Eugene Baah^1,2, Christian Obirikorang¹, Richard Harry Asmah³, Emmanuel Acheampong¹, Enoch Odame Anto^1,4, Michael Bright Yakass⁵, Dickson Mawusi^6*

¹Department of Molecular Medicine, School of Medical Science, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi, Ghana.
²Jubail Specialist Hospital, Sakumono, Tema Metropolis, Ghana.
³Department of Medical Laboratory, School of Allied Health Sciences, College of Health Sciences, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana.
⁴School of Medical and Health Science, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Australia.
⁵West African Centre for Cell Biology of Infectious Pathogens (WACCBIP), Department of Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology, University of Ghana, Accra, Ghana.
⁶School of Basic and Biomedical Sciences, Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Health and Allied Sciences, Ho, Ghana.

With the increasing use of electronic gadgets, the effects of electromagnetic waves on sperm quality have been reported. This study evaluated the capacity of seminal antioxidants to protect spermatozoa from the effects of exposure to non-ionizing cellular phone radiation on markers of semen quality and DNA integrity in an in-vitro model. A total of seventy-three (73) patients attending a fertility centre in Sakumono, Tema metropolis were recruited for this study. About 2 - 3 mls of freshly ejaculated semen was neatly collected by masturbation with consent and analysed according to the 2010 WHO standard semen analysis. A portion of Semen was exposed to non-ionizing cellular phone radiation for three (3) hours. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity levels and DNA fragmentation index (DFI) were determined before and after exposure. Data was entered and analysed using SPSS version 20.00 and Graph pad prism. DFI was positively associated with immobility (r = 0.233; p = 0.05) and negatively associated with percentage progressive motility (r = -0.258; p = 0.028), percentage total motility (r = -0.233; p = 0.05) and SOD levels (r = -0.270; p = 0.028). There was a significant positive linear relationship between SOD and progressive motility (r = 0.451; p < 0.0001), vitality (r = 0.725; p < 0.0001) and total motility (r = 0.705, p = 0.05). Higher seminal SOD level is protective against the damaging effects of electromagnetic waves on sperm quality.

DNA Fragmentation Index, Superoxide Dismutase, Semen, Non-Ionizing Radiations, Cellular Phones

Baah, E. , Obirikorang, C. , Asmah, R. , Acheampong, E. , Anto, E. , Yakass, M. and Mawusi, D. (2019) Seminal Antioxidant Capacity to Oxidative Stress Induced by Electromagnetic Waves Emitting from Cellular Phones on Sperm Quality: An in Vitro Simulation Model. Advances in Reproductive Sciences, 7, 94-105. doi: 10.4236/arsci.2019.74011.