review · Experimental Gerontology
Ageing reduces male reproductive function through measurable physiological alterations and semen degradation. As age advances, semen volume, sperm count, progressive motility, viability, and normal morphology all decline. Several underlying factors drive this malfunction, including vascular diseases, obesity, diabetes mellitus, accessory gland infections, toxic build-up, and disruptions in the antioxidant defence system. While low levels of reactive oxygen species are required for essential sperm processes such as capacitation and sperm-oocyte fusion, elevated levels in reproductive tissues destroy sperm cells and worsen infertility. The ageing process is also accompanied by hormonal imbalances stemming from changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, dysfunction of Sertoli and Leydig cells, and nitric oxide-mediated erectile dysfunction. Conversely, antioxidants including vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, zinc, and folate help preserve normal semen quality and overall male reproductive function.
Understanding how ageing impairs male fertility helps clarify the biological pathways that reduce semen quality over time. Recognising the roles of oxidative stress, metabolic disorders, and hormonal shifts highlights how lifestyle, systemic health, and targeted nutritional intake could potentially mitigate age-related declines in reproductive health.
This work points towards potential nutritional and therapeutic interventions, such as antioxidant formulations containing vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, zinc, and folate to support male fertility. Potential users include reproductive healthcare providers and nutraceutical manufacturers, though the findings represent early-stage conceptual research without explicit product formulations or clinical testing details in the abstract.
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Ageing is a natural process with physiological changes in different body parts and has been associated with decreased reproductive capacity. Factors such as imbalance in the antioxidant defence system, vascular diseases, diabetes mellitus, accessory reproductive glands infection, obesity as well as buildup of toxic substances play a role in age-related male reproductive malfunction. Age is inversely proportional to volume of semen, sperm count, sperm progressive motility, sperm viability, normal sperm morphology. The observed negative correlation between ageing and semen indices contributes to male infertility and reproductive decline. Normal levels of ROS, plays crucial role in facilitating sperm function, such as capacitation, hyper-activation, acrosome reaction as well as sperm-oocyte fusion; however, a substantial elevation in the endogenous level of ROS, especially in reproductive tissues, usually instigates destruction of sperm cells and heightened male infertility. Contrarily, antioxidants, such as vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, and micronutrients like zinc and folate, have been found by researchers to facilitate normal semen quality and male reproductive function. Furthermore, the role of hormonal imbalance as a result of the compromised hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis, Sertoli and Leydig cells disorder, and nitric oxide-medicated erectile dysfunction during ageing cannot be undermined.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.exger.2023.112232
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