Sperm encounter preseed under a microscope

It is natural to guess that conception would be promoted by a healthy amount of cervical fluid lining the way from where sperm are deposited to the location of the egg. In particular as we age less cervical fluid is produced so the two solutions to give the sperm the red carpet treatment are 1) find a way to produce more cervical fluid naturally (this may or may not be possible, but there are plenty of suggestions as to how it can be done), or 2) use a "sperm friendly" lubricant. One such lubricant is called preseed. We have been using it minimally so far, just when we need it and just enough for comfort. We have not yet used it according to the instructions, which suggest to insert a certain amount directly at the entrance of the cervix.

One question we have is whether or not the preseed is harming the sperm, or hindering their movement. So we decided to do an experiment. DH was kind enough to provide a sample of his semen. We placed a drop of it on a slide along with a drop of preseed next to it and placed a slide cover over it. We then took a video of it under a microscope. At the border region where the semen meets the preseed the sperm flow over into it. This is what we saw.



At the beginning of the video the camera focuses on sperm moving in semen alone which has been out of the body for about 30 minutes. From 1:07 the image begins to shift from the region of semen alone, through the region of mixed semen and preseed, towards the region of preseed alone. From 2:30 the camera shows the region deep on the side of the preseed. A similar experiment was performed in [1].

What we have learned from this experiment is that preseed alone is a less healthy medium than semen. As sperm move over into the region with the preseed they slow down. They become slower and slower as they move deeper into the preseed. If they remain in the region of the preseed almost all of them will stop moving within about a half hour whereas within the semen there are still a large number of healthy very mobile sperm after an hour.

While the video clearly shows that preseed alone is an unhealthy environment for sperm what is unclear is how it compares with cervical mucous. This is a future experiment. The amount of preseed used could also be an important factor. A study in [2] suggests that sperm motility is only marginally affected when the amount of preseed added to the semen is 10%. Our video also indicates that sperm still appear relatively OK in the border region where they move in lower concentrations of preseed.

What is clear is that preseed provides a healthier environment for sperm than any dry environment, where sperm would die almost instantaneously. One might guess that preseed could work well in cases where the entrance to the cervix is dry, if the sperm do not need to survive for very long, that is, when the egg is already waiting or is about to be released. So, it could be that the following analogy applies: When the cervical environment is dry, the path of the sperm to the egg is essentially blocked by a wall of fire, but when the passage is filled with preseed, then it is as if the wall has been removed and replaced by a treacherous path over hot coals.

Overall I am not convinced one way or the other. I will wait to make a judgement until after we have performed a few more experiments.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SI7MJXkEMns
[2] Ashok Agarwal, Fnu Deepinder, Marcello Cocuzza, Robert A Short, and Donald P Evenson, Effect of vaginal lubricants on sperm motility and chromatin integrity: a prospective comparative study, Fertility and sterility 89 (2008), no. 2, 375–379.
http://www.fertstert.org/article/S0015-0282(07)00518-3/abstract

Fern test + BBT charting, cont. [Cycle 7]

We are officially past 6 cycles ttc, so we are planning to make our first trip to the doctor to find out if there is anything preventing us from conceiving. At the moment it is difficult to hazard a guess other than our ages, in particular mine. I am 36. DH is 33. This cycle we will try focusing our intercourse on the night before and the day of ovulation, skipping the 2 days before these, rather than doing the recommended every day / every other day in the fertile window. The idea is that in this way the egg can only be fertilised by fresh sperm, and not older sperm. We are again using the fern test to track estrogen levels, and bbt charting to track progesterone. Here are the first saliva samples. Bbt chart to appear.

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