Protein expression and cell organelle behavior in spermatogenic cells

Spermatogenic cells stage-specifically produce a wide variety of proteins during spermatogenesis, wherein protein expression is coordinated with cell organelle behavior. It has been shown that the Golgi apparatus and the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) are uniquely coordinated with the expression of an immunoglobulin super-family protein, flagellar plasma membrane MC31 (MC31/CE9), and a molecular chaperone, calmegin, respectively. When the Golgi apparatus begins to generate sperm components in the primary spermatocytes, it actively engages in producing proteins for the acrosome in round spermatids and for the flagellum in elongating spermatids. Structurally, the Golgi apparatus is reduced in size during meiotic division, moves from the apical to the basal region (cytoplasmic lobe) when spermatids differentiate from round to elongating phase, and then collapses in the late maturation phase. The ER is distributed uniformly over the entire cytoplasm of spermatocytes and round spermatids, and then moves distally toward the cytoplasmic lobe along the bundles of microtubule, called the manchette, in elongating spermatids. The ER is resorbed into the radial body in late maturation spermatids. MC31/CE9 expresses strong immunostaining twice on the Golgi apparatus during spermatogenesis, first in early pachytene spermatocytes and then in early elongating spermatids. Calmegin expression exactly parallels ER behavior. This mini-review focuses on the unique relationships in spermatogenic cells, particularly those between protein expression and cell organelle behavior.     

Use of seminiferous tubule segments to study stage specificity of unscheduled DNA synthesis in rat spermatogenic cells

DNA repair in spermatogenic cells at various stages of maturity was determined by quantitation of unscheduled DNA synthesis (UDS). Male F-344 rats were exposed (i.p.) to methyl methanesulfonate (MMS, 35 mg/kg); 1 hr later, segments of seminiferous tubules corresponding to spermatogenesis stages II, IV-V, VI, VII, VIII, IX-X, XII, and XIV were isolated with the transillumination pattern of the tubules as a guide. Intact tubule segments were cultured 24 hr in the presence of [3H]thymidine, and UDS was quantitated by autoradiography as net grains/nucleus (NG). In primary spermatocytes from treated rats, NG count increased with increasing maturity from leptotene primary spermatocytes (3.5 NG) up through stage VIII and IX-X pachytene spermatocytes (22 NG), after which NG decreased in stage-XII pachytene and diplotene spermatocytes (to 16 NG and 8 NG, respectively). Round spermatids of steps 2-8 of spermiogenesis all exhibited approximately the same UDS response (8 NG). Elongating spermatids as mature as step 14 underwent UDS after exposure to MMS, but step-15 and later-step spermatids did not. The DNA repair response of pachytene spermatocytes cultured within segments of seminiferous tubule corresponding to stages VIII and IX-X was 4 to 25 times greater, depending on the dose of MMS, than pachytene spermatocytes isolated by enzymatic digestion and cultured in suspension [Bentley and Working, Mutat Res 203:135-142, 1988]. Thus, the use of segments of seminiferous tubule both increased the sensitivity of UDS as an indicator of DNA damage in rat germ cells and enabled the study of UDS in spermatogenic cells at different stages of maturity.     

Compensatory upregulation of myelin protein zero-like 2 expression in spermatogenic cells in cell adhesion molecule-1-deficient mice

The cell adhesion molecule-1 (Cadm1) is a member of the immunoglobulin superfamily. In the mouse testis, Cadm1 is expressed in the earlier spermatogenic cells up to early pachytene spermatocytes and also in elongated spermatids, but not in Sertoli cells. Cadm1-deficient mice have male infertility due to defective spermatogenesis, in which detachment of spermatids is prominent while spermatocytes appear intact. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms of the impaired spermatogenesis caused by Cadm1 deficiency, we performed DNA microarray analysis of global gene expression in the testis compared between Cadm1-deficient and wild-type mice. Out of the 25 genes upregulated in Cadm1-deficient mice, we took a special interest in myelin protein zero-like 2 (Mpzl2), another cell adhesion molecule of the immunoglobulin superfamily. The levels of Mpzl2 mRNA increased by 20-fold and those of Mpzl2 protein increased by 2-fold in the testis of Cadm1-deficient mice, as analyzed with quantitative PCR and western blotting, respectively. In situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry demonstrated that Mpzl2 mRNA and protein are localized in the earlier spermatogenic cells but not in elongated spermatids or Sertoli cells, in both wild-type and Cadm1-deficient mice. These results suggested that Mpzl2 can compensate for the deficiency of Cadm1 in the earlier spermatogenic cells.     

Specific expression of the mRNA for 25 kDA heat-shock protein in the spermatocytes of mouse seminiferous tubules

 The 25 kDa heat-shock protein (Hsp25) is a member of the family of small heat-shock proteins. We investigated the expression and cellular localization of Hsp25 mRNA in the testis of adult and developing mice using Northern blotting and in situ hybridization techniques. In the early postnatal days, i.e., before the onset of spermatogenesis, no Hsp25 mRNA was detected in the testis. At around 10 days postpartum, Hsp25 mRNA began to be expressed in the testis in coincidence with the onset of the first wave of spermatogenesis and increased in amount progressively toward adulthood. Throughout the testis development, the signal for Hsp25 mRNA was localized exclusively to germ cells and was not detected in Sertoli or interstitial cells. The testis of W/Wv mutant mice, which lack the germ cell line, exhibited no Hsp25 mRNA expression. In the testis of normal adult mice, the abundance of Hsp25 mRNA differed among the seminiferous tubules in different stages of spermatogenesis. The most intense signal for Hsp25 mRNA was localized to the spermatocytes at leptotene, zygotene and early pachytene phases, which are present in the tubules of stages I–III and IX–XII. The signal decreased in intensity in the late pachytene and diplotene spermatocytes and was not detected in spermatids. Spermatogonia were also devoid of the signal. These results suggested that Hsp25 plays some specific role in the meiotic prophase of the testicular germ cell. Accepted: 27 Oct 1998     

Reversible changes in rat spermatogenesis induced by an antifertility substance (Gossypol). A histochemical report

Male rats received Gossypol 30 mg/kg body mass daily through intubation for 30 and 60 d. The testes were processed for histological and histochemical lipid staining, thiamine pyrophosphatase (TPPase), and alpha-glycerophosphate dehydrogenase (alpha-GPDH)--examinations. Gossypol induced effects were: various types of deformations of elongated spermatids, and their loss of orientation towards the lamina propria during the maturation phase; displacement of germ cells and occasionally also of Sertoli cells towards the lumen of the seminiferous tubule in form of a "puff". TPPase was observed in the supranuclear region of dislocated round spermatids and pachytene spermatocytes. alpha-GPDH was observed in the split pieces of mid- and tail pieces of elongated spermatids enclosed in the "puff". The induced effects were reversible.     

Morphometric studies on rat seminiferous tubules

The goal of this morphometric study was to obtain quantitative information on the seminiferous tubules of Sprague-Dawley rats, including changes seen at various stages of the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium. Tissue from perfusion-fixed testes was embedded in Epon-Araldite; and sections were subjected to morphometric measurements at the light microscopic level, using point counting for volume densities and the Floderus equation for numerical densities. Changes occur in the diameter of the seminiferous tubule, as well as in the volume of the seminiferous epithelium and tubule lumen, from stage to stage during the cycle. A significant constriction of the seminiferous tubule accompanies spermiation. The volume of the seminiferous epithelium per unit length of the tubule begins to increase after stage XIV, and peaks at stage V of the next cycle. The tubule lumen increases dramatically from stages V to VII, at the expense of the epithelium. The number of Sertoli cells is constant per unit length of the seminiferous tubule at all stages of the cycle. This is also true for primary spermatocytes of various developmental phases and for round spermatids from step 1 through step 10 of spermiogenesis. The average number of younger (preleptotene, leptotene, zytgotene) primary spermatocytes per Sertoli cell is 2.34 ± 0.082 (SEM), the number of older (pachytene, diplotene) primary spermatocytes per Sertoli cell is 2.37 ± 0.064, and the ratio of step 1–10 spermatids to Sertoli cells is 7.89 ± 0.27. By studying tangential views of serially sectioned seminiferous tubules at stage V, it is shown that the number of step-17 spermatids associated with each Sertoli cell averages 8.35 ± 0.128, although the counts ranged from 6 to 11. The only appreciable occurrence of cell death after the last spermatogonial mitosis appears to be a 15% loss during the first meiotic division. From our morphometric results, corrected for volume changes during preparation for microscopy, there are 15.7 million (± 0.99 million) Sertoli cells per gram of fresh rat testis. The length of seminiferous tubule per gram of testis is estimated to be 12.4 ± 0.56 meters, and the tubule surface area per gram testis is 119.7 ± 2.57 cm². The daily production of mature spermatids is 9.61 million (± 0.615 million) per gram of testis.     

Origin and distribution of perforatorial proteins during spermatogenesis of the rat: an immunocytochemical study

The perforatorium is the subacrosomal portion of the perinuclear theca that encapsulates the nucleus of spermatozoa. In the rat, the perforatorium is a curved pointed structure, which in cross section is triangular in outline over the apical half and beyond the tip of the nucleus. The perforatorium, composed of several proteins, appears as a distinct structural entity only at the very end of spermiogenesis. In this study, polyclonal antibodies prepared against the entire isolated perforatorial fraction and against the major 16 and 34 kDa perforatorial polypeptides were used to determine the distribution of perforatorial proteins in germinal cells at various steps of differentiation. Immunoperoxidase staining at the LM level and quantitative immunogold labeling at the EM level were used. The labeling patterns with all three antibody preparations were identical. The immunolabeling first appeared in early pachytene spermatocytes and increased progressively, with a statistically significant upward trend, in both the nuclei and cytoplasm of spermatocytes and spermatids until step 9 of spermiogenesis. Up to this step the labeling concentration was significantly higher over the nucleus than over the cytoplasm. During nuclear condensation in steps 9 and 12 spermatids, there was a progressive loss of all the labeling over the nucleus and a corresponding increase of labeling over the cytoplasm. During steps 16-18, the early signs of condensation of perforatorial proteins occurred next to the inner acrosomal membrane. Then during step 19 there was a sudden condensation of perforatorial proteins into a definitive perforatorium. Thus proteins destined to form this cytoskeletal structure reside in both the nucleus and cytoplasm of spermatocytes and spermatids until nuclear condensation of the latter. Thereafter, they are restricted to the spermatid's cytoplasm and finally condense around the elongated nucleus at the end of spermiogenesis.     

Expression of a Y-box protein, YB2/RYB-a, precedes protamine 2 expression during spermatogenesis in rodents.

Y-box binding proteins, a large family of proteins, are involved in a variety of functions. The present study describes the expression of YB2, a rat Y-box binding protein, and/or RYB-a, an alternatively spliced product of the YB2 gene during spermatogenesis. YB2/RYB-a is thought to be the rat orthologue of mouse Y-box protein 3 (MSY3). An antibody which recognizes YB2/RYB-a was developed and applied in an immunochemical study of rat and mouse testes. We also carried out an in-situ hybridization study and Northern blot analysis of YB2/RYB-a and protamine 2 mRNA expression. Both YB2/RYB-a mRNA and the proteins appeared in prepubertal mouse testes, prior to the expression of the mouse protamine 2 mRNA. The mRNA and protein were present at high levels in spermatocytes, decreased in round to elongated spermatids, and were absent in spermatozoa. Since the protamine 2 mRNA was present at high levels in round and elongating spermatids, the proposed function of the YB2/RYB-a protein as a translational repressor of the mRNA was supported in mouse. The level and localization of YB2/RYB-a mRNA and protein expression in the rat testis was comparable to that in mouse testis, although rat testis is known to express a very low level of protamine 2, but is also likely to affect the expression of other proteins (including protamine 1) during spermatogenesis.     

Effects of alpha-amanitin on RNA synthesis in cultured rat seminiferous tubules.

The effect of the specific RNA polymerase II inhibitor α-amanitin on the cell morphology and RNA synthesis during spermatogenesis was investigated. Light microscopic autoradiography showed that α-amanitin largely decreased the rate of RNA synthesis in the pachytene spermatocytes and in the spermatids. Degenerative changes occurred most rapidly in the mid pachytene spermatocytes and in the intermediate and type B spermatogonia. Already after 14 hr of culture with α-amanitin (10 μg/ml) a part of these cells showed progressive degenerative changes beginning with the clumping together of the chromosomes. This indicates that at least a part of the HnRNA which is synthesized in the lampbrush loops of the pachytene chromosomes is needed to maintain the normal structure and function of the pachytene spermatocytes. Biochemical evidence suggested also that the formation of HnRNA was specifically inhibited in the pachytene spermatocytes by α-amanitin.     

Localization of dynamin 2 in rat seminiferous tubules during the spermatogenic cycle

Dynamin is a protein essential to endocytosis. Dynamin 2, a dynamin isoform, is expressed most intensely in testicular tissue; however, precise localization has never been studied. Therefore, we investigated the expression of dynamin 2 in rat testicular tissue using immunohistochemical methods, and discuss here the physiological function of this protein. Testicular tissues were obtained from Wistar rats at 10, 21 and 63 days of age. Immunohistochemistrical examination and Western blot analysis were conducted using dynamin 2 specific antibody. Western blot analysis showed that expression in 21- and 63-day-old rats was more intense than that in 10-day-old rats. Dynamin 2 expression was observed using immunohistochemical method in the seminiferous tubules of all rats. In the 63-day-old rats, the expression was intense, especially in spermatids in the earlier maturation stages and in spermatocytes, and was observed in Sertoli cells. However, in spermatids, the expression gradually declined as spermatids matured to spermatozoa. In the 21-day-old rats, the expression was evident in spermatocytes and Sertoli cells, but that in the 10-day-old rats was weak. Intense expression of dynamin 2 during spermatogenesis suggests that this protein plays an important role in this process.     

一种利用吖啶橙染色快速鉴定重力密度梯度沉降法中生精细胞类型的方法

目的建立一种重力梯度沉降法分离粗线期精母细胞,圆形及长形精子细胞的快速精确的镜检方法。方法利用重力密度梯度沉降法分离,将收集到的每管细胞分别放入96孔板中,每孔加入一定浓度的吖啶橙染液,于荧光显微镜下观察。结果通过分析对应荧光通道下3种生精细胞的细胞核/细胞质染色结果,可快速精确的分辨出粗线期精母细胞,圆形及长形精子细胞。结论建立了一种在重力密度梯度沉降法分离生精细胞过程中快速镜检检测粗线期精母细胞,圆形及长形精子细胞的方法。     

Histochemical tracing of zinc ions in the rat testis

To detect free zinc ions in the rat testes four rats were transcardially perfused with Na2S, and the seminiferous tubules from two other rats were incubated in Na2S. Sections from the two sources were autometallographically (AMG) developed, whereby zinc sulphide crystal lattices created in the tissue by the sulphide treatment were silver enhanced. Light microscopical analysis showed zinc ions in primary spermatogonia until the zygotene primary spermatocytes (stage I), in late pachytene spermatocytes (stages XII and XIII), and in late spermatids from step 15 to step 19 (stages I-VIII). The highest intensity of AMG grains was detected in the residual bodies and tails of step 19 spermatids. Grains were occasionally found in the cytoplasm of Leydig cells. Sections from animals treated with the chelator diethyldithiocarbamate prior to sulphide treatment showed a complete lack of AMG staining. At ultrastructural levels the AMG grains were found in smooth-surfaced endoplasmic reticulum of all spermatogonial stages, and in the acrosome, midpiece, and tail of late spermatids. The presence of zinc ions in preleptotene spermatocytes and cytoplasmic lobes of late spermatids suggests a specific role of free zinc at the onset of meiosis and at spermiation.      

Localisation cellulaire de la sécrétion de l’inhibine B testiculaire

Inhibin B is a testicular peptide hormone that regulates FSH secretion in a negative feedback loop. Inhibin B is a dimer of an α and βB subunit. In adult testis, the cellular site of production of these subunits is still controversial: Leydig cells, Sertoli cells and/or germ cells. The immunohistological localization (monoclonal antibodies anti α and anti βB) of both sub-units and the expression patterns of their mRNA (in situ hybridization with RNA probes) were examined in adult testicular biopsies with normal spermatogenesis or spermatogenetic arrest. In all testes, Sertoli cells and Leydig cells showed positive immunostaining for inhibin α subunit and expressed inhibin α subunit mRNA. Conversely, germ cells expressed the βB peptide (located from pachytene spermatocytes to round spermatids) and the βB subunit mRNA (located from spermatogonia to round spermatids). These results agree with the recent opinion that inhibin B is possibly a joint product of Sertoli cells and germ cells in adult men and it may be used as a serum marker of spermatogenesis.     

磷酸化的丝裂原活化蛋白激酶在大鼠睾丸的表达

目的研究丝裂原活化蛋白激酶(MAPKs)的3个亚家族成员细胞外信号调节激酶(ERK)、c-Jun N-端激酶(JNK)和p38 MAPK的活化形式在睾丸中的定位,了解MAPKs在生精过程中所起的作用。方法免疫组织化学方法检测正常大鼠睾丸中磷酸化的p-ERKJ、NK、p38 MAPK的表达情况。结果正常大鼠睾丸中p-ERK主要分布于精原细胞、细线前期到粗线期的初级精母细胞以及9~12期长形精子细胞的细胞核,p-JNK则主要位于支持细胞与支持细胞、支持细胞与生精细胞(尤其是19期精子细胞)之间,而p-p38 MAPK除了在生精小管的部分细胞胞质中有分布外,其表达最明显的部位是在间质细胞的细胞质。结论ERKJ、NK和p-38 MAPK分别定位于正常大鼠睾丸内的不同部位,提示MAPKs不同的亚家族成员分别在精子发生的不同环节中发挥主要作用。ERK可能参与生精细胞增殖、分化的信号转导,JNK则可能通过调节细胞的黏附而最终影响生精细胞的迁移与精子释放过程,而p38 MAPK除了可能与JNK一起参与精子释放的调节外,最主要的作用可能是睾酮合成分泌的调节。