Acrosin, a proteolytic enzyme located in the acrosome of sperm, exhibits amidase, esterase, and proteinase activity on synthetic and natural substrates containing arginyl and lysyl residues. Highly purified acrosin preparations from boar acrosomes have endopeptidase activity cleaving only the carboxyl bonds of arginine and lysine with a strong preference for arginine bonds. The Michaelis consta...

The localization of glycoprotein synthesis and storage was studied during acrosome formation in guinea-pig using fine-structure autoradiography after (3H)-fucose incorporation. Three days after (3H)-fucose injection, labelling in spermatids was concentrated in the matrix of developing acrosomes, and it was evident that the fucosylation of acrosomal glycoproteins largely overshadowed the fucosyl...

The divalent metal cation ionophore A23187 rapidly induces a normal acrosome reaction in a population of guinea-pig sperm suspended in calcium medium. In the course of the acrosome reaction, proacrosin, the zymogen precursor of the protease acrosin, is activated. Although the acrosome reaction causes exocytosis of the acrosomal contents, 'soluble' acrosin is not released in significant amounts ...

The aim of this study, based on a prospective analysis, was to evaluate the accuracy of the TEST-yolk buffer enhanced hamster egg penetration test (HEPT) and acrosin activity in discriminating fertile from infertile males as compared with the conventional semen profile. The incidence of spontaneous pregnancies was monitored during a follow-up period ranging between 18-24 months in 62 couples wi...

Using homologous recombination, we have previously produced male mice carrying a disruptive mutation (Acr-/-) in the acrosin gene. Although Acr-/- mouse sperm lacking the acrosin protease activity still penetrated the zona pellucida and fertilized the egg, the mutant sperm exhibited a delay in penetration of the zona pellucida solely at the early stages after insemination. To further elucidate ...

BACKGROUND The continued endeavour to design novel, non-detergent molecules that can be useful as topical, prophylactic contraceptives has led to the discovery of substituted isoxazolecarbaldehydes as a new class of compounds exhibiting both spermicidal and acrosin inhibitory activities simultaneously. METHODS Normal human semen samples were used to detect the spermicidal and acrosin inhibito...

Evidence has accumulated suggesting multiple roles of acrosin in fertilization, including its participation in early steps of gamete recognition and binding. However, the implication of acrosin in many of these processes is not compatible with its presumptive sequestration within the sperm acrosome until a late phase of the acrosome reaction. In an earlier study (J. Tesarik, J. Drahorad, J. Pek...

Acrosin purified from an acidic extract of ejaculated goat spermatozoa migrated as a single 42,000-Mr band in SDS/polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis. Reduction and alkylation of caprine acrosin produced two polypeptides, one of Mr 40,000 (heavy chain) and the other of Mr 3700 (light chain). The light chain purified by reversed-phase h.p.l.c. was a glycosylated octadecapeptide with an amino acid...

The development of cattle population in Indonesia has not reached in happy condition, even in east Java in the 2001 was decreasing population of some cattle, such as sheep 3,24 %, cow 5,86% and buffalo 5% whereas other cattle have increased far from our hope. (Anonymous, 2007). The obstacle which is faced in the cattle breeding field is involving reproduction field, the priority fertilization p...

The objective of this study was to determine the effect of age and reproductive season on selected properties of semen from the arctic fox, Aloper lagopus L. The experiment used 40 ejaculates collected manually from 6 animals (3 foxes aged one year and 3 foxes older than three years). Statistically less semen (0.39 cm3) was collected from the young compared to the older animals, and the ejacula...