An X-linked gene encodes a major human sperm fibrous sheath protein, hAKAP82. Genomic organization, protein kinase A-RII binding, and distribution of the precursor in the sperm tail.

Mammalian sperm motility is regulated by a cascade of cAMP-dependent protein phosphorylation events mediated by protein kinase A. A-kinase anchor proteins (AKAPs) direct protein kinase A activity by tethering the enzyme near its physiological substrates. We have characterized a major human sperm fibrous sheath AKAP, hAKAP82, and its precursor, pro-hAKAP82, the homologues of the mouse fibrous sheath proteins mAKAP82 and pro-mAKAP82. The cDNA sequence of pro-hAKAP82 was highly homologous to the mouse sequence, and the functional domains of the pro-hAKAP82 protein, the protein kinase A binding, and the pro-hAKAP82/hAKAP82 cleavage sites were identical to those of the mouse protein. The genomic organization of mouse pro-AKAP82 was determined. Alternative splicing occurred in both the mouse and human pro-AKAP82 genes that resulted in at least two distinct transcripts and possibly two different proteins. Compared with pro-mAKAP82, considerably less pro-hAKAP82 was processed to hAKAP82 in human sperm. Although pro-mAKAP82 localizes only to the proximal portion of the principal piece of the flagellum, pro-hAKAP82 localized to the entire length of the principal piece. The pro-hAKAP82 gene mapped to human chromosome Xp11.2, indicating that defects in this gene are maternally inherited. These studies suggest several roles for hAKAP82 in sperm motility, including the regulation of signal transduction pathways.

Assembly of AKAP82, a protein kinase A anchor protein, into the fibrous sheath of mouse sperm.

The assembly of the mammalian sperm flagellum is a complex developmental event requiring the sequential activation of genes encoding the component parts and the coordinated assembly of these proteins during the differentiation of the haploid spermatid. In this study, the mechanism underlying the assembly of the fibrous sheath surrounding the axoneme was examined. The subject of the study was the major fibrous sheath protein of the mouse sperm flagellum, AKAP82, a member of the A Kinase Anchor Protein (AKAP) family of polypeptides that bind the regulatory (RII) subunit of protein kinase A (PK-A). Immunoelectron microscopy demonstrated that AKAP82 is present throughout the transverse ribs and longitudinal columns of the fibrous sheath. Since AKAP82 is initially synthesized as a precursor (pro-AKAP82) during spermiogenesis, an antiserum was raised against a peptide from the processed region of pro-AKAP82 (M(r) 97,000). In immunoblotting experiments, the antibody detected pro-AKAP82 in condensing spermatids but not in epididymal sperm. In addition, two other immunoreactive proteins of M(r) 109,000 (p109) and M(r) 26,000 (p26, representing the "pro" domain of the precursor) were present in epididymal sperm. Alkaline phosphatase treatment of epididymal sperm proteins demonstrated that p109 was a phosphorylated form of pro-AKAP82 that remained in sperm. By immunofluorescence, pro-AKAP82 was localized to the entire length of the principal piece in testicular sperm, while in epididymal sperm p109 and p26 were present only in the proximal portion of the principal piece. Pro-AKAP82 was solubilized when germ cells were extracted with Triton X-100. However, in sperm, both AKAP82 and p109 were almost totally resistant to these extraction conditions and remained in the particulate fraction even after extraction with Triton and dithiothreitol. Similar to pro-AKAP82, the RII subunit of PK-A was present in the Triton X-100-soluble fraction of developing germ cells. In sperm, much of the RII also became particulate, consistent with the hypothesis that AKAP82 anchors RII in the flagellum. These data indicate that pro-AKAP82 is synthesized in the cell body, transported down the axoneme to its site of assembly in the fibrous sheath, and then proteolytically clipped to form mature AKAP82.