Cisplatin (CIS) is used in the treatment of cancer, but its nonspecific systemic actions lead to toxic effects on other parts of the body. This study investigated the severity of CIS toxicity by increasing its dose over a constant time period. Sprague Dawley rats were divided into five treatment groups and control group with CIS (2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 mg/kg) administered intraperitoneally for 5 da...

We previously established that levels of the sperm membrane protein, SP22, are highly correlated with the fertility of sperm from the cauda epididymidis of rats exposed to both epididymal and testicular toxicants, and that a testis-specific SP22 transcript is expressed in postmeiotic germ cells. In this study, polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies were generated to study the expression of SP22 i...

The molecular bases of sperm thermotaxis, the temperature-oriented cell motility, are currently under investigation. Thermal perception relies on a subclass of the transient receptor potential [TRP] channels, whose member TRPV1 is acknowledged as the heat sensing receptor. Here we investigated the involvement of TRPV1 in human sperm thermotaxis. We obtained semen samples from 16 normozoospermic...

AIM To investigate the expression of Spindlin 1 (Spin 1) isoform2 and assess its function in mouse testis. METHODS First, reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) was used to determine whether Spin1 isoform2 is present in mouse testis. Then the expression patterns of the isoform between newborn and adult mice testes were compared by immunoblot analysis. Finally, the diversity ...

Genes expressed in testes are critical to male reproductive success, affecting spermatogenesis, sperm competition, and sperm-egg interaction. Comparing the evolution of testis proteins at different taxonomic levels can reveal which genes and functional classes are targets of natural and sexual selection and whether the same genes are targets among taxa. Here we examine the evolution of testis-e...

WASp family proteins serve as conserved regulators of branched microfilament array formation via the Arp2/3 actin polymerization machinery. We have identified a specific role during spermatogenesis for the Drosophila WASp homolog (Wsp) and associated elements. Spermatogenesis within the fly testis is carried out in cysts, where a pair of somatic cyst cells encloses differentiating sperm. The fi...

Thioredoxins (Trx) are small ubiquitous proteins that participate in different cellular processes via redox-mediated reactions. We report here the identification and characterization of a novel member of the thioredoxin family in humans, named Sptrx (sperm-specific trx), the first with a tissue-specific distribution, located exclusively in spermatozoa. Sptrx open reading frame encodes for a pro...

Our previous studies showed that gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)A and GABAB receptors are involved in rat sperm acrosome reaction induced by progesterone or GABA. Here, we report the presence of GABAC receptor in rat testis and spermatozoa. Full-length complementary DNA encoding the rho1, rho2 and rho3 subunits of GABAC receptor were cloned from rat testis; their sequences are identical to those...

Sperm competition theory predicts that with increase in sperm competition, males either invest more in reproductive organ(s) and/or improve ejaculate investment. We test this idea using experimental evolution in Drosophila melanogaster. We maintained replicate populations of Drosophila melanogaster under male (M) and female (F) biased sex ratio regimes for more than a hundred generations with t...

Breeding for fine black fur has generated a colony of mink wherein 20-30% of the males are infertile. Two clinical groups are distinguishable: one being infertile from the start (primary infertility), and the other infertile after one or more years of fertility (secondary fertility). Although the etiology of primary infertility is unknown, the available data indicate that secondary infertility ...