Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Soufir, J.-C.
• Marson, J.
• Jouannet, P.

Titel

Free L-carnitine in human seminal plasma

Ist Teil von

• International journal of andrology, 1981-12, Vol.4 (1-6), p.388-397

Ort / Verlag

Oxford, UK: Blackwell Publishing Ltd

Erscheinungsjahr

1981

Quelle

Wiley HSS Collection

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• It has often been suggested that determination of free L(—)‐carnitine in seminal plasma may provide a good indication of epididymal function. However, there has been disagreement regarding the origin of L(—)‐carnitine (epididymis and seminal vesicles) and its concentration in human seminal plasma. In this study, free L(—)‐carnitine was determined after deproteinization with an enzymatic spectrophotometric method. In 29 semen samples from fathers and with normal spermiograms (semen volume between 2 and 6 ml, sperm count over 20.106/ml, more than 50% motile spermatozoa), the total free L(—)‐carnitine in the seminal plasma was 1010 nmoles (SD:±480), in 16 samples from vasectomized men it was 131 nmoles (SD:±77), and in 5 from men with agenesis of the vas deferens and seminal vesicles it was 21 nmoles (SD:±25). These results suggest that free L(—)‐carnitine in the seminal fluid is predominantly of epididymal origin. The results of free L(—)‐carnitine determinations in split ejaculates and the absence of a correlation between L(—)‐carnitine and fructose concentrations in semen from normal subjects indicate that the seminal vesicles make only on minor contribution to L(—)‐carnitine in the seminal plasma.