Industrial Hydrocarbons Exposure Deteriorates Sperm Integrity and Reproductive Function

ABSTRACT

Occupational exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) or metal fumes in the workplace may be detrimental to male fertility. The present study compared sperm concentration, total motility, strict morphology and oxidative stress and SDF levels between 81 men, controls ( n  = 17) and workers from plastic industry workers ( n  = 18), steel EAF process ( n  = 15), waste incineration plants ( n  = 16) or aluminium factories smelting in the same plant for all workplaces involved in this cross‐sectional research. In all treated groups, the sperm concentration, motility, normal morphology, acrosome integrity and membrane function dropped significantly compared with those in controls ( p  < 0.001). Elevated ROS, MDA and low SOD and CAT activities confirmed the presence of severe oxidoreductive imbalance, particularly in Aluminium and incineration workers. DNA breaks assayed by SCD and comet showed a clear positive exposure‐response relationship with the highest OTM in aluminium workers. Network pharmacologic work showed that 67 shared targets were regulated by PAH exposure and male infertility. The hub gene analysis pointed at EGFR, ESR1, RELA, PTGS2, MMP2 and MMP9 as the core hub genes while KEGG enrichment suggested that the HIF‐1 and TNF‐related inflammatory pathway, along with the endocrine disruption side of stress activating signalling, was involved. Inflammatory signal activation and endocrine disturbance together seemed to end up with really severe damage to sperm DNA, and it also turned on a bunch of mechanisms through which these chemical carcinogens can exert effect. ROS and MDA were negatively correlated with motility as well as sperm concentration significantly ( p  < 0.05), whereas antioxidant enzymes showed a positive correlation. These findings show how PAH‐related industrial poisoning disrupts important reproductive output through ROS‐mediated genetic instability and suggest the relevance of protection measures in high‐risk industries.