BACKGROUND Mammalian oocyte activation occurs via a series of intracellular calcium (Ca(2+)) oscillations thought to be induced by a sperm-specific phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ). There is now strong evidence to indicate that certain types of human male infertility are caused by failure of the sperm to activate the oocyte in an appropriate manner. Molecular analysis of the PLCζ gene of a male pati...

OBJECTIVE To determine the effect of infertility-linked sperm phospholipase Cζ (PLCζ) mutations on their ability to trigger oocyte Ca(2+) oscillations and development, and also to evaluate the potential therapeutic utility of wild-type, recombinant PLCζ protein for rescuing failed oocyte activation and embryo development. DESIGN Test of a novel therapeutic approach to male factor infertility....

A sperm-specific phospholipase C-zeta (PLCζ) is believed to play an essential role in oocyte activation during mammalian fertilization. Sperm PLCζ has been shown to trigger a prolonged series of repetitive Ca(2+) transients or oscillations in oocytes that precede activation. This remarkable intracellular Ca(2+) signalling phenomenon is a distinctive characteristic observed during in vitro ferti...

Sperm-specific phospholipase C ζ (PLCζ) activates embryo development by triggering intracellular Ca(2+) oscillations in mammalian eggs indistinguishable from those at fertilization. Somatic PLC isozymes generate inositol 1,4,5-trisphophate-mediated Ca(2+) release by hydrolyzing phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PI(4,5)P(2)) in the plasma membrane. Here we examine the subcellular source of ...

OBJECTIVE The study aimed to evaluate the feasibility and reproducibility of measuring phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ) using immunostaining in human sperm and to investigate the relationship between PLCζ immunoreactivity and DNA fragmentation and oxidation in human sperm. METHODS Semen samples were obtained from participants (n=44) and processed by the conventional swim-up method. Sperm concentra...

Sperm PLCζ (phospholipase Cζ) is a distinct phosphoinositide-specific PLC isoform that is proposed to be the physiological trigger of egg activation and embryo development at mammalian fertilization. Recombinant PLCζ has the ability to trigger Ca²⁺ oscillations when expressed in eggs, but it is not known how PLCζ activity is regulated in sperm or eggs. In the present study, we have transfected ...

Phospholipase C-zeta (PLCζ) is a strong candidate for the mammalian sperm-derived factor that triggers the Ca(2+) oscillations required for egg activation at fertilization. PLCζ lacks a PH domain, which targets PLCδ1 to the phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate (PtdIns(4,5)P(2)) substrate in the plasma membrane. Previous studies failed to detect PLCζ in the plasma membrane, hence the means of P...

Teratozoospermia is a disorder associated with high abnormal sperm morphology which affects fertility in males. In recent years, it has been described that biomarker-based sperm quality evaluation can alleviate male infertility treatment. Phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ) is a sperm-specific factor which appears to be a predicting biomarker for fertilization potential of males. Following fertilizatio...

BACKGROUND Failed fertilization post-ICSI has been mainly attributed to the sperm's inability to induce oocyte activation. Phospholipase C zeta (PLCζ) is considered to be one of the factors for the induction of oocyte activation. The aim of this study was to quantitatively assess the expression of PLCζ in globozoospermic men or those with previously low or failed fertilization in comparison wit...

A male infertility-linked human PLCζ (phospholipase Cζ) mutation introduced into mouse PLCζ completely abolishes both in vitro PIP(2) (phosphatidylinositol 4,5-bisphosphate) hydrolysis activity and the ability to trigger in vivo Ca2+ oscillations in mouse eggs. Wild-type PLCζ initiated a normal pattern of Ca2+ oscillations in eggs in the presence of 10-fold higher mutant PLCζ, suggesting that i...