BACKGROUND Cysteine-rich secretory protein 2 (CRISP2) is localized to the human sperm acrosome and tail. It can regulate ryanodine receptors Ca(2+) gating and binds to mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase 11 in the acrosome and gametogenetin 1 (GGN1) in the tail. METHODS AND RESULTS In order to test the hypothesis that CRISP2 variations contribute to male infertility, we screened co...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Frequently relapsing and steroid-dependent minimal-change nephrotic syndrome (MCNS) that originates in childhood can persist after puberty in >20% of patients. These patients require immunosuppressive treatment during several decades of their life. We examined long-term adverse effects of persistent nephrotic syndrome and immunosuppressive medications, focusing on rena...

Human TIF2 (hTIF2) is a member of the p160 family of nuclear receptor coactivators, which includes SRC-1 and p/CIP. Although the functions of hTIF2 and of its mouse homolog (GRIP1 or mTIF2) have been clearly established in vitro, their physiological role remains elusive. Here, we have generated mice lacking mTIF2/GRIP1 and examined their phenotype with a particular emphasis on reproductive func...

Male factor subfertility has increasingly been considered the cause of infertility in couples. Many men with male infertility have sperm problems such as oligozoospermia, asthenozoospermia, or teratozoospermia. Because abnormal semen parameters are idiopathic to some extent, no standard therapy has been established to date. Herbal medicine has been reported to have beneficial properties in the ...

OBJECTIVES The objective was to evaluate seminal fluid indices of male partners of infertile couples so as to identify the current status of the contributions of male factor to infertility in our environment. MATERIALS AND METHODS This is a prospective study of the seminal fluid indices of consecutively consenting male partners of infertile couples seen at the Fertility and Endocrinology Rese...

The septin gene belongs to a highly conserved family of polymerizing GTP-binding cytoskeletal proteins. SEPTs perform cytoskeletal remodeling, cell polarity, mitosis, and vesicle trafficking by interacting with various cytoskeletons. Our previous studies have indicated that SEPTIN12+/+/+/- chimeras with a SEPTIN12 mutant allele were infertile. Spermatozoa from the vas deferens of chimeric mice ...

Globozoospermia is a rare but severe teratozoospermia, characterized by ejaculates consisting completely of round-headed spermatozoa that lack an acrosome or, in partial globozoospermia, containing a variable proportion (20.0-90.0%) of acrosomeless spermatozoa. Men that are affected with total globozoospermia are infertile, and even the application of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) has...

CD52 is a glycosylphosphatidylinositol-anchored glycoprotein secreted by the epididymis where it is incorporated into sperm membranes. The antigen is common to spermatozoa and lymphocytes, and its role is not known. Quantitative analysis using immunostaining with the monoclonal antibody CAMPATH-1G and flow cytometry indicated positive signals from approximately 80% of viable, washed ejaculated ...

Nearly 7% of men are afflicted by male infertility worldwide, and genetic factors are suspected to play a significant role in the majority of these patients. Although sperm morphology is an important parameter measured in the semen analysis, only a few genetic causes of teratozoospermia are currently known. The objective of this study was to define the association between alterations in the gen...

BACKGROUND Sperm heterogeneity in the human, as observed in oligo-astheno-teratozoospermia (OAT), is associated with hypospermatogenesis. METHODS The chromatin of sperm from OAT and normospermic males was characterized with antibodies specific for nucleosomes, the histone H3.1/H3.2 isoform, histone TH2B, apoptosis-associated H4 acetylation (KM-2) and protamines. Subsequently, sperm samples were...