Klinefelter syndrome, 47,XXY (KS), is the most frequent sex chromosome aberration in males, affecting 1 in 660 newborn boys. The syndrome is characterized by testicular destruction with extensive fibrosis and hyalinization of the seminiferous tubules resulting in small testes, hypergonadotropic hypogonadism, and azoospermia in the majority of cases. Until recently, infertility was considered an...

Testicular cancer accounts for ∼1% of all cancers in men worldwide, with over 90% testicular being germ cell tumors (GCTs). Since the introduction multimodal therapy, GCTs have been among most curable solid tumors. However, some patients may develop late relapse, which is defined as recurrence at least two years after initial complete remission. Late particularly common teratomatous and associa...

In M33 cockerels, the rapid phase of testicular growth and the onset of sperm production were advanced either by increasing daylengths or an interrupted-night photoschedule; they were delayed by constant short days (8L). The results observed under constant long days (16L) were intermediate. In this strain, the cockerels maintained their mean testicular weight during the adult period while their...

INTRODUCTION Testicular cancer is the most common malignancy in men aged 15-40 years [Bols et al.: Philadelphia, Wolters Kluwer, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 2011]. Its incidence comprises 0.8% of all male cancers worldwide, with a mortality rate of 0.1%. The incidence has nearly doubled from 1975 to 2007 leading to the concern of environmental causes [Thomas: Am J Epidemiol 2013; 178: 1240-1...

The hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a pleiotropic cytokine whose action is mediated by c-met, a glycoproteic receptor with tyrosine kinase activity which transduces its multiple biological activities including cell proliferation, motility and differentiation. During embryonic development HGF acts as a morphogenetic factor as previously demonstrated for metanephric and lung development. Recent...

5 Original Publications 8 Abbreviations 9 Introduction 10 Review of the Literature 11 1. Germ cells 11 1.1 Inner cell mass and embryonic stem cells 11 1.2 Factors essential for maintenance of pluripotency and self-renewal 11 1.3 Development and migration of germ cells 14 2. Gonadal development 16 2.1 Ovarian differ entiation 17 2.2 Testicular differentiation 18 3. GATA transcription factors in ...

Alternative pre-messenger RNA (mRNA) splicing is a key molecular event that allows for protein diversity and plays important roles in development and disease. Alternative pre-mRNA splicing regulations during spermatogenesis and alternative pre-mRNA splicing etiology in testicular tumorigenesis are yet to be characterized. By genome-wide analysis, here we describe alternative splicing features t...

Previous studies showed an increased prevalence of testicular cancer among fathers and brothers of testicular cancer patients. We examined whether testicular, other genital, and breast cancers aggregate in parents and siblings of testicular cancer patients in a population-based case-control study, including males, ages 15 to 69 years at diagnosis, with primary malignant tumors of the testes or ...

In an elaborate sequence of experiments, Bissonnette (1930, 1931, 1937) demonstrated a positive correlation between testicular growth in European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) and seasonally increasing photoperiods occurring during the winter and spring months in north temperate zone latitudes. These results eventually led to the classification of the starling as a primary photoperiodic species ...

Platelet-derived growth factors (PDGFs) are paracrine factors with roles in mesenchymal-epithelial interactions during normal and pathologic processes. Previously, PDGF and its receptor (PDGFR) have been shown to be present in perinatal, peripubertal, and adult rat testes. The role of PDGF in embryonic testicular cord formation is not known. The hypothesis tested is that PDGFs and PDGFRs are ex...