Paraben exposure and semen quality of Japanese male partners of subfertile couples

OBJECTIVES: Possible relationship between semen quality (semen volume, sperm concentration and sperm motility) and parabens exposure was investigated in male partners of couples who visited a gynecology clinic in Tokyo for infertility consultation (n = 42, 36.8 ± 5.4 years). METHODS: Semen parameters were measured according to WHO guideline at the clinic, and urinary methyl- (MP), ethyl- (EP), propyl- (PP) and butyl (BP) paraben concentrations were measured with liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. RESULTS: Geometric mean urinary concentrations (geometric standard deviation) of the subjects were 48.2 (4.52), 1.88 (4.72), 1.13 (6.75) and 0.184 (11.1) ng/mL for MP, EP, PP and BP, respectively. No significant association was found between semen parameters and urinary paraben concentrations in multiple regression analyses and logistic regression analyses. CONCLUSIONS: Two reasons of the absence of adverse effects on semen quality might be suggested: lower paraben exposure level of the subjects and small sample size. Further investigation of effect of paraben exposure among general male population at environmental levels is warranted.