Figure 1.

Differential diagnosis of azoospermia and prediction of subtypes of non-obstructive zoospermia with seminal plasma proteins ECM1 and TEX101.

When azoospermia is diagnosed by semen analysis, low SP levels of ECM1 (<2.3 µg/mL) and TEX101 (<5 ng/mL) proteins suggest obstructive azoospermia, while high SP level of ECM1 (>2.3 µg/mL) suggests non-obstructive azoospermia. SP concentration of TEX101 protein may also discriminate between non-obstructive azoospermia subtypes of Sertoli cell-only (< 5 ng/mL) and hypospermatogenesis or maturation arrest (5-120 ng/mL). Men with obstructive azoospermia have good chances of sperm retrieval by testicular sperm extraction (TESE), while for men with Sertoli cell-only, sperm retrieval is unlikely and TESE can be avoided. From Drabovich, A.P. et al. Differential Diagnosis of Azoospermia with Proteomic Biomarkers ECM1 and TEX101 Quantified in Seminal Plasma. Sci. Transl. Med. 5, 212ra160 (2013) (19).

Reprinted with permission from AAAS.