Expressions of chemokine CXCL12 and its receptor CXCR4 in human sperm / 中华男科学杂志

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the expression patterns of the chemokine CXCL12 and its receptor CXCR4 in human sperm.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>We collected semen samples from 10 fertile men, performed density gradient centrifugation, and then determined the expressions of both CXCL12 and CXCR4 in the sperm by RT-PCR and immunofluorescence staining.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>RT-PCR revealed the mRNA expressions of CXCL12 (0.641 +/- 0.180) and CXCR4 (0.464 +/- 0.100) in the sperm. However, only CXCR4 rather than CXCL12 was expressed at the protein level, and the positive staining for CXCR4 was observed mainly in the posterior part of the acrosome.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>CXCL12 and CXCR4 are involved as important molecules in regulating the function of human sperm.</p>