Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38717684›Full record

ReviewMolecular and cellular biochemistry2025

Sperm epigenetics and sperm RNAs as drivers of male infertility: truth or myth?

Loredana Leggio, Greta Paternò, Fabrizio Cavallaro, Marco Falcone, Silvia Vivarelli, Claudio Manna, Aldo E Calogero, Rossella Cannarella, Nunzio Iraci

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Molecular and cellular biochemistry, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 9 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
9citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

9 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
  2. Review
  3. Methods for Investigating the Sperm Epigenome.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2026
    Review
  4. Review
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Review
  9. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Loredana Leggio *Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences (BIOMETEC), University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
Greta Paternò *Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences (BIOMETEC), University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
Fabrizio CavallaroDepartment of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences (BIOMETEC), University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
Marco FalconeDepartment of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences (BIOMETEC), University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
Silvia VivarelliDepartment of Biomedical and Dental Sciences, Morphological and Functional Imaging, Section of Occupational Medicine, University of Messina, 98125, Messina, Italy.
Claudio MannaDepartment of Biomedicine and Prevention, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy.
Aldo E CalogeroDepartment of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
Rossella CannarellaDepartment of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Catania, Catania, Italy.
Nunzio IraciDepartment of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences (BIOMETEC), University of Catania, Catania, Italy. nunzio.iraci@unict.it.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Male infertility represents a complex clinical condition that often challenges the ability of reproductive specialists to find its etiology and then propose an adequate treatment. The unexplained decline in sperm count, as well as the association between male infertility and mortality, morbidity, and cancer, has prompted researchers toward an urgent need to better understand the causes of male infertility. Therefore, molecular biologists are increasingly trying to study whether sperm epigenetic alterations may be involved in male infertility and embryo developmental abnormalities. In this context, research is also trying to uncover the hidden role of sperm RNAs, both coding and non-coding. This narrative review aims to thoroughly and comprehensively present the relationship between sperm epigenetics, sperm RNAs, and human fertility. We first focused on the technological aspects of studying sperm epigenetics and RNAs, relating to the complex role(s) played in sperm maturation, fertilization, and embryo development. Then, we examined the intricate connections between epigenetics and RNAs with fertility measures, namely sperm concentration, embryo growth and development, and live birth rate, in both animal and human studies. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms involved in sperm epigenetic regulation, as well as the impact of RNA players, will help to tackle infertility.

Indexed as

Epigenesis, GeneticInfertility, MaleRNASpermatozoaAnimalsHumansMaleRNAEpigeneticsExtracellular vesiclesMale infertilityMethylationMicroRNAsSpermatozoaSperm RNAs

Identifiers

PMID38717684
PMCPMC11835981

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.