The vaginal microbial makeup has a substantial impact on women's health. The typical vaginal microbial profile in healthy women of reproductive age comprises aerobic, facultatively anaerobic, as well as obligately anaerobic organisms. However, the optimal vaginal microbiota is dominated by lactobacilli and is thought to defend against pathogenic microbial colonization and infection by producing lactic acid, antimicrobial metabolites, and lowering immune system activation. Recent research has come up with the term "molecular bacterial vaginosis (BV)" to describe non-optimal vaginal microbiota that is low in Lactobacillus species (spp.) and has a lot of facultative and absolute anaerobic bacteria specifically Gardnerella vaginalis. In the context of IVF, BV has been linked to infertility. The study comprised forty-six women to explore the vaginal and follicular microbiota of asymptomatic infertile Iraqi women starting an ICSI trial. At the time of ova pick-up, a high vaginal swab and follicular fluid were acquired from each instance for DNA extraction to test for the presence of microorganisms by the use of a real-time PCR special commercial kit. In conclusion, molecular technologies have offered a more thorough view into the vaginal microbiota, which may explain why vaginal dysbiosis shifts during the ICSI-ET treatment. Even though the majority of women have no clinically visible infection, the fact is that they have an aberrant vaginal micro-ecology profile. Nevertheless, isolating microorganisms from follicular fluid did not reduce the likelihood of fertilization or the pregnancy rate during ICSI cycles.
Background: Semen quality is a measure of the ability of semen to accomplish fertilization. Semen quality involves both sperm quantity and quality. The general population is exposed to metals at low concentrations either voluntarily through supplementation or involuntarily through intake of contaminated food and water or contact with contaminated soil, dust, or air. Some metals, such as lead (Pb), are nonessential xenobiotics that can be measured in most of the general population. Objectives: Our goal in this study is to assess relationships between exposure to lead at environmental levels and human semen-quality parameters. Materials and Methods: The study populations consist of 81 infertile male of general population who are occupationally unexposed to lead and another 26 healthy fertile male as control group. Blood lead and seminal plasma lead measurements performed by the electrothermal-atomic absorption spectrometry (AAS) method. Macroscopic and microscopic examination of semen performed according to WHO recommendations. Seminal plasma separated from the spermatozoa by centrifugation and stored at -20°C until required for analyses. Results: This study showed significant increase in seminal plasma lead mean value in moderate and severe oligozoospermic infertile males than in fertile male controls( p<0.05). The result also showed no statistically significant difference in blood lead concentration among the infertile group compared to fertile controls. Conclusions: The results of this study indicate that even moderate exposure to Pb at environmental level (blood Pb < 400 µg/L) can significantly reduce reproductive capacity in men.