ULK1 and obesity due to melanocortin 4 receptor deficiency: With this in mind, our purpose was to examine the association between obesity, relative STL, mRNA expression of autophagy-related genes (Beclin1, AMPKa1, ULK1, BAX, and BCL2), values of semen parameters, sperm DNA integrity, chromatin maturation, apoptotic changes, and intracellular ROS levels.