Investigation of Gene Expression of Heat Shock Protein A2 in Semen and Serum Levels Of IL-18 and IL-37 in Oligospermic Males with Varicocele

A varicocele is the most common rectification cause of male infertility. It is an abnormal dilation of the veins of the pampiniform plexus in the spermatic cord. It is estimated to affect 10-15% of men and adolescents. The aim of the current study was to investigate the immunological parameters, gene expression profiles, and their correlations in varicocele and non-varicocele oligospermic patients compared to healthy controls, providing insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying male infertility. A total of 120 males were involved in this study over the period from October 2023 to January 2024. Blood and semen samples were collected from patients who were diagnosed with varicocele confirmed oligospermia (40 samples) and non-varicocele oligospermic patients (40 samples), in addition to 40 apparently healthy males as control. The level of IL-18 and IL-37 was estimated in the serum of tested groups using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) technique. The serum levels of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-18 were significantly elevated in all patient groups compared with control. Interestingly, the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-37 was also significantly increased. The gene expression of heat shock protein A2 (HSPA2) was detected using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). The fold of gene expression results by RT-PCR technique revealed a significant downregulation of HSPA2 (0.3453 ± 0.311-fold) gene expression in varicocele patients and a 0.154 ± 0.13-fold decrease in non-varicocele oligospermia compared with control. However, no significant correlation was found between the expression of HSPA2 and the levels of IL-18 and IL-37.