ABSTRACT
Objective@#To investigate the expressions of solute carrier family 22 member 14 (SLC22A14) and sperm-associated antigen 6 (SPAG6) in the sperm of idiopathic asthenospermia men.@*METHODS@#We collected semen samples from 50 idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients and another 50 normal sperm donors, purified the sperm by discontinuous density centrifugation on Percoll gradients, and then determined the mRNA and protein expressions of SLC22A14 and SPAG6 by RT-PCR and Western blot, respectively.@*RESULTS@#Compared with the normal controls, the idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients showed significantly decreased mRNA expressions of SLC22A14 (0.77 ± 0.08 vs 0.53 ± 0.10, P<0.01) and SPAG6 (0.78 ± 0.09 vs0.52 ± 0.10 , P<0.01) and protein expressions of SLC22A14 (0.80 ± 0.09 vs 0.55 ± 0.10 , P<0.01) and SPAG6 (0.78 ± 0.09 vs 0.56 ± 0.09, P<0.01).@*CONCLUSIONS@#T The expressions of SLC22A14 and SPAG6 are reduced in the sperm of the patients with idiopathic asthenospermia, which may be one of the important causes of asthenospermia.
Subject(s)
Humans , Male , Asthenozoospermia , Metabolism , Blotting, Western , Ejaculation , Microtubule Proteins , Genetics , Metabolism , Organic Cation Transport Proteins , Genetics , Metabolism , Proteomics , RNA, Messenger , Metabolism , Sperm Motility , Spermatozoa , MetabolismABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the role of the TEKT4 protein in the pathogenesis of idiopathic asthenozoospermia.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We separated and purified the ejaculated sperm from idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients and normozoospermic men by Percoll discontinuous density gradients, and detected the distribution and the expressions of TEKT4 mRNA and TEKT4 protein by RT-PCR and Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>RT-PCR revealed that the expression of TEKT4 mRNA was significantly lower in the sperm of the idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients than in those of the normozoospermic men (0.59 +/- 0.13 vs 0.75 +/- 0.15, t = 4.325, P < 0.05), and Western blot confirmed the results of RT-PCR (0.48 +/- 0.14 vs 0.69 +/- 0.13, t = 5.939, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The expression of TEKT4 is significantly decreased in the ejaculated sperm of idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients, which might be one of the causes of idiopathic asthenozoospermia.</p>
Subject(s)
Adult , Humans , Male , Asthenozoospermia , Metabolism , Blotting, Western , Case-Control Studies , Cytoskeletal Proteins , Metabolism , RNA, Messenger , Genetics , Sperm Motility , Spermatozoa , MetabolismABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the role of the SEPT4 protein in the pathogenesis of idiopathic asthenozoospermia.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Samples of ejaculated sperm from idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients and normozoospermic men were separated and purified by Percoll discontinuous density gradients, the distribution and expression of SEPT4 in the sperm samples were determined by immunocytochemistry, and the expressions of SEPT4 mRNA and SEPT4 protein were detected by RT-PCR and Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Immunocytochemistry showed that the expression of SEPT4, located in the annulus, was significantly reduced in the sperm of the idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients (t = 3.452, P < 0.01). RT-PCR revealed that the expression of SEPT4 mRNA was significantly lower in the sperm of the idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients than in those of the normozoospermic men (t = 3.521, P < 0.05). Western blot confirmed the results of RT-PCR (t = 5.872, P < 0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The expression of SEPT4 is significantly decreased in the ejaculated sperm of idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients, which might be one of the causes of idiopathic asthenozoospermia.</p>
Subject(s)
Adult , Humans , Male , Young Adult , Asthenozoospermia , Metabolism , Case-Control Studies , Septins , Metabolism , Sperm Motility , Spermatozoa , MetabolismABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the role of the cation channel of sperm 1 (CatSper1) protein in the pathogenesis of idiopathic asthenozoospermia.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Sperm samples from patients with idiopathic asthenozoospermia were separated by Percoll discontinuous density gradients, and the distribution and expression of the CatSper1 protein were determined by immunocytochemistry. Western blotting was used to detect the different expressions of CatSper1 in the ejaculated sperm from the normal control, mild asthenozoospermia, moderate asthenozoospermia and severe asthenozoospermia groups, followed by statistical analyses.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The expression of CatSper1, located in the principle piece of the sperm tail, was reduced significantly in the samples from the idiopathic asthenozoospermia patients as compared with the normal controls (t = 2.188, P = 0.042). The relative contents of the CatSper1 protein in the sperm of the control, mild asthenozoospermia, moderate asthenozoospermia and severe asthenozoospermia groups were 0.806 +/- 0.266, 0.669 +/- 0.207, 0.505 +/- 0.214 and 0.295 +/- 0.162, respectively, significantly decreased in the asthenozoospermia patients in comparison with the normal controls (P <0.05). There was a positive correlation between the percentage of progressively motile sperm and the relative content of the CatSper1 protein (r = 0.633, P = 0.000).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The decreased or abnormal expression of the CatSper1 protein may be a factor involved in the pathogenesis of idiopathic asthenozoospermia.</p>