ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study on the expression patterns of proteins associated with cell junctions in the developing mouse testes.</p><p><b>METHOD</b>The expression levels of reproductive related cell lines spermatogonia cell line GC1 spg, spermatocyte cell line GC2 spg, leydig cell line TM3, and sertoli cell line TM4, primary sertoli cells, and 1-6-week mouse testes were analyzed using Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The sertoli cell junction-associated membrane proteins adhesion molecule A, Occludin and Claudin, and the sertoli-germ cell junction-associated membrane proteins junctional adhesion molecule C, Nectin-3, and E-cadherin were stage-specific in the seminiferous tubules in the mouse testes. The adaptor proteins associated with cell juctions zonula occludens-1, zonula occludens-2, Afadin, Β-catenin, and CD2-associated protein were not stage-specific in the seminiferous tubules in the mouse testes.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>In the seminiferous tubules in the mouse testes, the membrane proteins associated with cell junctions are stage-specific. However, the expressions of adaptor proteins associated with cell junctions do not obviously change.</p>