Immune Infertility
Understanding This Complex Condition
Sep 26, 2007 Joanna Karpasea-Jones
After conception, the developing embryo is sometimes miscarried due to the woman's immune system recognising it as a 'foreign body' and attacking it, but did you know that immune infertility can occur in response to sperm, before conception even has a chance to take place?
There is a type of immune infertility where the woman produces antibodies to her partner's sperm.
Researchers have recently discovered the presence of a human protein, previously unknown, called radial spoke protein 44, or RSP44. This protein is found in the tail of the sperm and contributes towards the movement of the sperm. It is also found in the lungs, brain and thyroid gland and is present in both men and women.
Sometimes a person may produce anti-sperm antibodies (ASA) in response to the RSP44 protein, which then causes immune infertility. In women with ASA, the antibodies gather sperm together and poke holes in their membranes, rendering them useless for conception. It makes it impossible for the sperm to penetrate correctly into the egg.
In very severe cases of ASA, a woman may have anaphylaxic shock when her partner ejaculates or when she undergoes artificial insemination.
Men can also produce antibodies to their own sperm. They are particularly at risk if they have had a vasectomy and then had it reversed. Once the body stops making sperm, it then produces antibodies to sperm. If the vasectomy is reversed, the immune system then counters a response to the newly formed sperm. It also accounts for up to 15% of unexplained infertility cases.
What Treatments Are Available For Immune Infertility?
It is sometimes possible to temporarily suppress the immune system to allow normal conception to occur. Intra-cytoplasmic sperm injection (directly into the egg) has been successful in persons with immune infertility, in some cases, and sperm washing has been proven to help. This technique is used in people with HIV to prevent the virus from being carried in sperm and affecting the potential baby. It can also be useful to people with other immune system disorders.
Herbal Treatments
Chinese medicine can also help in cases of male immune infertility. According to Zhejiang Hospital of Integrated Chinese and Western Medicine, 100 men were treated with the Chinese herb, Yikang Tang and 100 men were treated conventionally with predisone (a drug). ASA levels in both groups decreased, but it was more marked in the Yikang Tang group. The pregnancy rate in their wives was also higher in that group.
The improvement rate of symptoms and the stability of that affect was also greater in the Yikang Tang group than in the predisone group, particularly after drug therapy had been stopped. (J Tradit Chin Med. 2006 Mar;26(1):36-8).
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