[Sperm mitochondrial DNA and male infertility: An update].

Sperm mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) damage is closely related with male infertility. Lacking for the protection by histone and DNA-binding protein, sperm mtDNA is prone to the attack by reactive oxygen species (ROS) and, without an effective repair system of mtDNA, ROS-induced changes in mtDNA may damage the synthesis of mtDNA encoding proteins and affect the function of mitochondria, which may be an important genetic factor for male infertility. Related studies should focus on finding the causes of sperm mtDNA damage and its relationship with male infertility.