Knockout of glutathione peroxidase 5 down-regulates the piRNAs in the caput epididymidis of aged mice / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

The mammalian epididymis not only plays a fundamental role in the maturation of spermatozoa, but also provides protection against various stressors. The foremost among these is the threat posed by oxidative stress, which arises from an imbalance in reactive oxygen species and can elicit damage to cellular lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids. In mice, the risk of oxidative damage to spermatozoa is mitigated through the expression and secretion of glutathione peroxidase 5 (GPX5) as a major luminal scavenger in the proximal caput epididymidal segment. Accordingly, the loss of GPX5-mediated protection leads to impaired DNA integrity in the spermatozoa of aged Gpx5

Mechanistic target of rapamycin kinase (Mtor) is required for spermatogonial proliferation and differentiation in mice / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

Spermatogonial development is a vital prerequisite for spermatogenesis and male fertility. However, the exact mechanisms underlying the behavior of spermatogonia, including spermatogonial stem cell (SSC) self-renewal and spermatogonial proliferation and differentiation, are not fully understood. Recent studies demonstrated that the mTOR complex 1 (mTORC1) signaling pathway plays a crucial role in spermatogonial development, but whether MTOR itself was also involved in any specific process of spermatogonial development remained undetermined. In this study, we specifically deleted Mtor in male germ cells of mice using Stra8-Cre and assessed its effect on the function of spermatogonia. The Mtor knockout (KO) mice exhibited an age-dependent perturbation of testicular development and progressively lost germ cells and fertility with age. These age-related phenotypes were likely caused by a delayed initiation of Mtor deletion driven by Stra8-Cre. Further examination revealed a reduction of differentiating spermatogonia in Mtor KO mice, suggesting that spermatogonial differentiation was inhibited. Spermatogonial proliferation was also impaired in Mtor KO mice, leading to a diminished spermatogonial pool and total germ cell population. Our results show that MTOR plays a pivotal role in male fertility and is required for spermatogonial proliferation and differentiation.

Spatial and temporal expression of germ cell nuclear factor in murine epididymis / 亚洲男科学杂志(英文版)

<p><b>AIM</b>To investigate the spatial and temporal expression of germ cell nuclear factor (GCNF) in mouse and rat epididymis during postnatal period.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>The epididymal sections from different postnatal days were stained for GCNF by the indirect immunofluorescence technique and digital photographs were taken by a Carl Zeiss confocal microscope.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>GCNF was first detected on day 12 in mouse epididymis and day 14 in rat epididymis. The highest expression of GCNF was observed on day 35 in both mouse and rat epididymis. In adults, GCNF exhibited a region-specific expression pattern, i.e., it was expressed predominantly in the initial segment, caput and proximal corpus of rat epididymis and was abundant in the proximal corpus of mouse epididymis. GCNF could be found in the nuclei of the principal, apical, narrow, clear and halo cells.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>GCNF may play an important role in epididymal differentiation and development and in sperm maturation.</p>