Title of artificial intelligence competition:
Prediction of sperm DNA damage using combined or independent analysis of sperm parameters (concentration, motility and morphology) or men’s age
Statement of the problem: According to the World Health Organization (WHO-2021), infertility refers to the impossibility of getting pregnant after a couple of years of trying without using contraceptives. About 30% of the causes of infertility are related to men, 30% are related to women, 10% are shared between couples, 25% of the causes of infertility are unknown and 5% are related to other factors.
The first step in the treatment of infertile couples is the analysis of semen or the sample of men’s ejaculated sperm. According to the booklet “What couples should know about spermogram” (author: Dr. Mohammad Hossein Nasra Asfahani), which is based on the World Health Organization, a series of microscopic and macroscopic factors and parameters in men’s sperm samples are examined and evaluated. According to WHO, thresholds have been defined for the main parameters such as sperm count, sperm concentration, total sperm motility, progressive sperm motility, immobility, sample volume, and abnormal sperm morphology. If these parameters are not within these thresholds, the sample is considered abnormal in terms of that parameter or parameters. Nevertheless, some people have a normal sperm sample based on WHO criteria, but the cause of their infertility is still unknown.
On the other hand, the aging of men can also be a possibility of infertility due to the decrease in sperm quality as men age.
During the last decades, some laboratories believe that examining the health of their DNA or genome can be of great value in the treatment of these infertile people. In addition to affecting the treatment results of infertile couples, including conception, embryo quality, pregnancy, and implantation, the increase in the level of sperm DNA damage can also have a negative effect on the health of the next generation. Now, if this injury is accompanied by the increasing age of the father, the treatment result will be more affected. In addition, there have been several reports that increased sperm DNA damage is associated with increased miscarriage rates.
There are several tests to evaluate sperm DNA damage, the most important of which are the TUNEL and SCSA (DFI and HDS) tests.
Main objective: predicting the amount of sperm DNA damage using combined or independent analysis of sperm parameters (sperm count, concentration, motility and morphology) or men’s age.
Number of data: Approximately 6000 to 7000 sperm samples from infertile men.
Problem: which of the parameters of sperm analysis or men’s age, which is included in the Excel file of these infertile men’s data and is as follows, independently or in combination can determine the results of examining sperm DNA fragmentation or damage, which are in three rows under the following headings predict?
%Sperm DNA fragmentation (TUNEL assay) |
%Sperm DNA fragmentation (SCSA assay) |
% High DNA stainability (HDS) |
The titles of sperm analysis parameters and men’s age in the Excel file of the data provided are:
Male age (year) | Semen volume (ml) |
Sperm count (million/ejaculate) | Sperm concentration (million/ml) |
Sperm total motility (%) | Sperm progressive motility (%) |
Sperm non-progressive motility (%) | Immotile sperm (%) |
Sperm abnormal morphology (%) |
Note 1: Sperm count is the product of Semen volume and Sperm concentration.
Note 2: Sperm total motility is the sum of the two columns Sperm progressive motility + Sperm non-progressive motility.
Note 3: To check the appearance of sperm or sperm morphology, we reported the results of abnormal sperm morphology for each person in an Excel file. Some studies report the results of normal sperm morphology.
Another point that may be needed for the analyzes is based on the report of the World Health Organization (2021), the threshold limit of sperm parameters is defined as follows: