The Association of Gut Microbiota and Spermatogenic Dysfunction

The microbial composition of the stool samples was determined by 16S rRNA (ribosomal ribonucleic acid) gene sequencing analysis and metagenomics. Comparison of microbial abundance and diversity of healthy volunteers and patients with spermatogenic dysfunction.

Metabolomics is the large-scale study of small molecules, such as fatty acids, bile acids, lipid mediators and others. Comparison of metabolites of healthy volunteers and patients with spermatogenic dysfunction.

Analyzing physical activity (hours/week) of different groups. The questionnaire about Physical Activity Time, "Over the past 30 days, on average how many hours per week did you usually spend on physical activity?"

Analyzing daily sitting time (hours) of different groups. The questionnaire about Daily Sitting Time, "Over the past 7 days, on average how many hours did you usually spend sitting on a typical day?"

Analyzing eating habits (vegetarian or meat lover) of different groups.

Analyzing daily sleeping time (hours) of different groups. The questionnaire about Sleeping Time, "Over the past 7 days, on average how many hours did you usually sleep per day?"

Analyzing education level (highest grade or level of school) of different groups. The questionnaire about Education Level, "What is the highest grade or level of school you have completed or the highest degree you have received? The response categories are: less than 9th grade education, 10-12th grade education (includes no diploma), some college or associates (AA) degree, and college graduate or higher."

Analyzing annual family income (CNY) of different groups. The questionnaire about Family Income, "How much is annual family income (CNY)?"

Analyzing Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) scores of different groups. The Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) is one of the tools used to screen for the presence and severity of depression. Each response category of 'not at all', 'several days', 'more than half the days' and 'nearly every day' is assigned a score of 0, 1, 2 and 3 respectively. The total score is calculated by adding together the scores for the 9 questions. The final scores of 0-4, 5-9, 10-14, 15-19, 20-27 are the ranges for none, mild, moderate, moderately severe and severe, respectively.

Analyzing years of smoking of different groups. The questionnaire about Years of Smoking, "For about how many years have you smoked? 0 means non-smoker"

Analyzing number of cigarettes smoked of different groups. The questionnaire about Number of Cigarettes Smoked, "During the past 30 days, on average how many cigarettes did you smoke per day? non-smoker choose 0"

Analyzing history of drinking of different groups in the past one month. "Considering all types of alcoholic beverages, during the past one month, do you have at least 1 drink of any kind of alcohol per week, not counting small tastes or sips? By a drink, I mean 500 ml beer, 50 ml liquor, or 500ml other type of alcoholic beverage."

Analyzing history of drinking of different groups in the past 7 days. "Considering all types of alcoholic beverages, during the past 4 weeks, do you have at least 1 drink of any kind of alcohol, not counting small tastes or sips? By a drink, I mean 1000 ml beer, 200 ml liquor, or 1000ml other type of alcoholic beverage.""Considering all types of alcoholic beverages, during the past one month, do you have at least 1 drink of any kind of alcohol per week, not counting small tastes or sips? By a drink, I mean 500 ml beer, 50 ml liquor, or 500ml other type of alcoholic beverage."

To analyze Body Mass Index (kg/m^2) of different groups, height(cm) and weight(kg) will be measured.

Analyzing waistline (cm) of different groups.

To analyze spermatic concentration (10^6 per ml). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) semen analysis procedure 5th edition, spermatic concentration will be measured.

To analyze total sperm count (10^6 per ejaculate). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) semen analysis procedure 5th edition, total sperm count will be measured.

To analyze spermatic progressive motility (%). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) semen analysis procedure 5th edition, progressive motility will be measured.

To analyze percentage of normal morphology of sperm (%). According to the World Health Organization (WHO) semen analysis procedure 5th edition, percentage of normal morphology of sperm will be measured.