Matched whole-genome sequencing of blood (10×) and five single sperm cells (1×) per individual in 53 men

Sci Data. 2026 Feb 10;13(1):405. doi: 10.1038/s41597-026-06808-0.

Abstract

Asthenozoospermia, characterized by reduced sperm motility, is a major contributor to male infertility and motivates improved resources for studying spermatogenesis at the genomic level. Here, we present a paired whole-genome sequencing (WGS) dataset from 53 Han Chinese men, comprising matched blood WGS per participant (target ~10×) and 3-5 low-coverage single-sperm WGS libraries per participant (target ~1×). The dataset includes 263 single-sperm libraries (79 from 16 asthenozoospermic participants and 184 from 37 normozoospermic participants) and is accompanied by rich participant-level metadata, including baseline characteristics, endocrine measurements, and semen parameters such as sperm motility and vitality. Raw reads underwent standardized quality-control filtering, and key sequencing metrics (Q20 and GC content) met commonly used thresholds; the achieved mean depth was approximately 10× for blood and ~1.7× for single sperm. By integrating sperm motility/vitality phenotypes with individual-matched genomic information, this resource provides a foundation for male reproductive genomics and for developing and benchmarking algorithms for gamete-genome dissection, and may support future translational research on male infertility evaluation.

Publication types

  • Dataset

MeSH terms

  • Asthenozoospermia* / genetics
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Sperm Motility
  • Spermatozoa*
  • Whole Genome Sequencing*