Human Molecular Genetics, 2001, Vol. 10, No. 18 1873-1877
© 2001 Oxford University Press
Identification of a Y chromosome haplogroup associated with reduced sperm counts
1Immunogénétique Humaine, INSERM E021, Institut Pasteur, Paris, France, 2Andrology Unit, University of Florence, Florence, Italy, 3University Department of Growth and Reproduction, Rigshospitalet, 9, Blegdamsvej, DK-2100, Copenhagen, Denmark and 4Department of Genetics, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK
In man, infertility is associated with microdeletions of specific regions of the long arm of the Y chromosome. This indicates that factors encoded by the Y chromosome are necessary for spermatogenesis. However, the majority of men with either idiopathic azoospermia or oligozoospermia have grossly intact Y chromosomes and the underlying causes of their infertility are unknown. We hypothesized that some of these individuals may carry other rearrangements or sequence variants on the non-recombining region of the Y chromosome that may be associated with reduced spermatogenesis. To test this hypothesis, we typed the Y chromosome in a group of Danish men with known sperm counts and compared the haplotype distribution with that of a group of unselected Danish males. We found that one class of Y chromosome, referred to as haplogroup 26+, was significantly overrepresented (27.9%; P < 0.001) in the group of men with either idiopathic oligozoospermia (defined as <20 x 106 sperm/ml) or azoospermia compared to the control Danish male population (4.6%). This study defines, for the first time, a class of Y chromosome that is at risk for infertility in a European population. This observation suggests that selection may be indeed active on the Y chromosome, at least in the Danish population, raising the possibility that it could alter the pattern of Y chromosome haplotype distribution in the general population.
+ To whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel: +33 1 45 68 89 20; Fax: +33 1 45 68 86 39; Email: kenmce@pasteur.fr
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