What is it? Major sperm protein, commonly referred to as MSP, is the centerpiece of the motility machinery that propels the crawling movement of nematode sperm. MSP was originally identified in Caenorhabditis elegans, but has since been found in sperm from several other species of nematode. The name derives from the abundance and cellular specificity of the 14 kDa protein: MSP makes up 15–20% o...

Mammalian sperm undergo several maturation steps after leaving the testis to become competent for fertilization. Important changes occur in sperm within the female reproductive tract, although the molecular mechanisms underlying these processes remain unclear. To investigate sperm membrane remodeling upon sperm maturation, we developed transgenic mouse lines carrying glycosylphosphatidylinosito...

DEVELOPMENTAL CONTEXT OF SPERM CELLS ........................................ 190 Structural Characterization ..................................................................... 190 Sperm Dimorphism and Preferential Fertilization .......................................... 191 ISOLATION OF SPERM CELLS ................................................................. 192 Technical Details and P...

Changes in protein subdomains through alternative splicing often modify protein-protein interactions, altering biological processes. A relevant example is that of the stress-induced up-regulation of the acetylcholinesterase (AChE-R) splice variant, a common response in various tissues. In germ cells of male transgenic TgR mice, AChE-R excess associates with reduced sperm differentiation and spe...

The acrosome reaction (AR) is a process of membrane fusion and lytic enzyme release, which enables sperm to penetrate the egg surroundings. It is widely recognized that specific sperm proteins form an active network prior to fertilization, and their dynamic relocation is crucial for the sperm-egg fusion. The unique presence of the membrane cofactor protein CD46 in the sperm acrosomal membrane w...

Mammalian sperm capacitation is an essential prerequisite to fertilization. Although progress is being made in understanding the physiology and biochemistry of capacitation, little has been yet explored about the potential role(s) of individual sperm cell protein during this process. Therefore elucidation of the role of different sperm proteins in the process of capacitation might be of great i...

We previously identified 62, 39, 27 and 7 kDa porcine sperm plasma membrane proteins that demonstrated a predominant affinity for the porcine oocyte plasma membrane by Western ligand blotting. The current experiments were designed to further investigate the potential roles of these molecules in sperm-oocyte plasma membrane interaction. Abilities of these proteins to bind to the oocyte plasma me...

background: we undertook this study to investigate the variation relationship of sperm associated antigen 11 (spag11) mrna expression and spag11e protein in the epididymis and spermatozoa of experimental left varicocele (elv) rats. these findings could contribute to the understanding of the role of epididymal proteins in sperm functions and the mechanism of male infertility induced by varicocel...

Cisplatin (CIS) is used in the treatment of cancer, but its nonspecific systemic actions lead to toxic effects on other parts of the body. This study investigated the severity of CIS toxicity by increasing its dose over a constant time period. Sprague Dawley rats were divided into five treatment groups and control group with CIS (2, 4, 6, 8, and 10 mg/kg) administered intraperitoneally for 5 da...

Mammalian sperm are incapable of fertilizing eggs immediately after ejaculation; they acquire fertilization capacity after residing in the female tract for a finite period of time. The physiological changes sperm undergo in the female reproductive tract that render sperm able to fertilize constitute the phenomenon of "sperm capacitation." We have demonstrated that capacitation is associated wit...