Paternal Folate Status and Sperm Quality, Pregnancy Outcomes, and Epigenetics: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

ABSTRACT:

Scope

The effectiveness of maternal folate in reducing the risk of congenital malformations during pregnancy is well established. However, the role of the paternal folate status is scarcely investigated. The aim of this study is to investigate the evidence of associations between the paternal folate status and sperm quality, sperm epigenome, and pregnancy outcomes.

Methods and results

Databases are searched up to December 2017 resulting in 3682 articles, of which 23 are retrieved for full-text assessment. Four out of thirteen human and two out of four animal studies show positive associations between folate concentrations and sperm parameters. An additional meta-analysis of four randomized controlled trials in subfertile men shows that the sperm concentration increases (3.54

SUBMITTER: Hoek J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7317557 | biostudies-literature | 2020 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature