Some women do develop antibodies to sperm. This can be confirmed by doing tests on the serum (blood) for anti sperm antibodies or by doing sperm-cervical mucus (secretion from the neck of the uterus) interaction test.
In 25 per cent of infertile women and even in some fertile/pregnant women anti sperm antibodies are demonstrable. Why some women develop and others do not develop anti sperm antibodies is difficult to explain.
Sperms are foreign to both the man who produces them and the woman who receives them. In normal life, in normal men the sperms are kept away from the blood stream by the blood-testis barrier formed by the Sertoli cells in the testes.
This barrier is as strong as the blood brain barrier. Breach of this barrier, as occurs with infections or injury, may lead to the formation of anti sperm antibodies in men. Besides, semen also contains immune-suppressive agents secreted by seminal vesicles (accessory structure).
We can see this effect in any radio frequency receiving instrument, such as, oscilloscope in any electronic lab or more commonly a transistor radio.
In normal women, sperms are deposited in the vagina and they gain access to the cervix and uterus within minutes. The acidic environment in the vagina kills the remaining sperms. Under normal circumstances the sperms do not gain access to the blood stream and hence do not lead to an immune response.
The possible explanations as to why some women develop anti sperm antibodies are:
- The breach of the blood tissue barrier in the women as occurs in vaginal injuries and possible exposure of the women to sperms in sufficient quantities.
- Each woman's immune response is individualistic and varies from person to person.
The precise role of anti sperm antibodies in causation of infertility is not clear. Some believe anti sperm antibodies can be the cause of infertility both in men and women.
Courtesy : The Hindu
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