Sperm DNA fragmentation: An early and reliable marker of air pollution

[Display omitted] •Air pollution is a main risk factor for male infertility.•Steel plant workers have higher sperm DNA Fragmentation Index (DFI) than controls.•We propose sperm DFI as biomarker of presence and effects of polluted environment.•We candidate human sperm as an early, sensitive biomarker of pollution. Environmental factors could have a key role in the continuous and remarkable decline of sperm quality observed in the last decades. This study compared the seminal parameters and sperm DFI in men living in areas with different levels of air pollution. Results demonstrate that both steel plants workers and patients living in a high polluted area show a mean percentage of sperm DNA fragmentation above 30%, highlighting a clear sperm damage. In this work, two different techniques were used to measure sperm DNA damage in patients’ groups, finding in both cases a high sperm DFI in patients living in polluted areas. We candidate sperm DNA fragmentation as a valuable early marker of the presence and harmful effects of pollution. We suggest that sperm DNA evaluation could be both an indicator of individual health and reproductive capacity, and a suitable datum to connect the surrounding environment with its effects.