A differential cytokine expression profile before and after rFSH treatment in Sertoli cell cultures of men with nonobstructive azoospermia

To evaluate the effects of follicle-stimulating hormone (FSH) treatment on cytokine gene expression in cultured Sertoli cells from men with nonobstructive azoospermia, a total of 15 azoospermic men diagnosed as obstructive azoospermia (OA) (n=5) and nonobstructive azoospermia (NOA) (n=10) were included in the study. NOA patients were split into two further subgroups: nFSH and hFSH serum FSH levels. Expression of cytokine gene panel (88 genes), FSHR and ABP was evaluated by real-time PCR array analysis. FSHR protein level was measured by the Western blot. In primary cultures of Sertoli cells, seven genes were found to be increased and 13 were decreased in NOA group, when compared to OA (p<.05). When rFSH was introduced into the culture media, expression of 12 genes in the NOA group restored a comparable level to those of the control OA group. Sertoli cells in all groups responded rFSH administration with increased expression of ABP. Our results suggest that FSH treatment may have positive effects on Sertoli cells of nonobstructive azoospermic patients via changing the expression levels of certain genes and restoring their levels in normal Sertoli cell population. Some cytokine levels can be considered as a potential candidate for detecting NOA patients. ABP is a good marker for cell viability and functionality in primary Sertoli cell culture.