Project Number: 92700A1 Project Title: Reproductive Health Assessment of Male Workers Division: DART Project Officer (PO): Steven Schrader PO Degree: Ph.D. PO Area of Expertise (scientific discipline): Andrology Project Start Date: 10/04 Project End Date: 09/09 Total Budget over the Project Period: $34,914 Goal/Sub-Goal: Chronic Effects of Pesticide Exposure/Health Outcomes Research Challenge/Issue: Data from wildlife and animal testing has shown that male reproductive system can be a affected by the toxic nature of agricultural pesticides. Moving the research from animals to humans has been challenging This primarily been from the extensive numbers of pesticides used in agriculture to make sure limited resources are being used to the study the pesticides which may have the largest health risk. One approach has been to look a large population of couples trying to conceive and look for associations between fertility and biological body burden of pesticides. Activities: An ongoing collaborative study in the form of an interagency agreement funded by NIH/National Institute for Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) is recruiting couples from Texas and Michigan who have decided to conceive. This study entitled Longitudinal Investigation of Fertility and the Environment (LIFE) will evaluate 800 couples planning to conceive during FY05-07. Pesticide exposure is being assessed in blood, urine, and semen. Male fecundity is being measured by assessing two semen samples from each male study participant. This effort will provide important information in the study of infertility and provide excellent baseline data for future occupational field studies. Outputs: The ongoing NIH/NICHD study of couples attempting conception required that semen samples be shipped to the analysis lab by overnight delivery. To date, approximately 270 semen samples have been received and processed by the DART Andrology laboratory. The NIOSH team had a special shipping container be developed to handle the semen collection jar according shipping of biohazard standard that would preserve the specimen for analysis. Also a method for assessing sperm motility in these shipped specimens was developed. This methodology was published as an abstract and presented as a poster at the American Society of Andrology annual meeting. Turner, TW and SM Schrader. 2006. Sperm Migration Assay As Measure of Recently Ejaculated Sperm Motility in Specimens Shipped Overnight. J Andrology 27 (supplement) Intermediate Outcomes: Study is ongoing. The NIOSH team had a special shipping container be developed to handle the semen collection jar according shipping of biohazard standard that would preserve the specimen for analysis. This methodology can be used in other male reproductive field studies.
End Outcomes: Study is ongoing External Factors: What outside influences either enhanced or inhibited success of the program? To what extent did the external factors contribute to the success or failure of the program?