Light and electron microscopic localization of ATPase in normal and degenerating testes of Syrian hamsters

Hepatocyte and Sertoli Cell Aquaporins, Recent Advances and Research Trends

Aquaporins (AQPs) are proteinaceous channels widespread in nature where they allow facilitated permeation of water and uncharged through cellular membranes. AQPs play a number of important roles in both health and disease. This review focuses on the most recent advances and research trends regarding the expression and modulation, as well as physiological and pathophysiological functions of AQPs in hepatocytes and Sertoli cells (SCs). Besides their involvement in bile formation, hepatocyte AQPs are involved in maintaining energy balance acting in hepatic gluconeogenesis and lipid metabolism, and in critical processes such as ammonia detoxification and mitochondrial output of hydrogen peroxide. Roles are played in clinical disorders including fatty liver disease, diabetes, obesity, cholestasis, hepatic cirrhosis and hepatocarcinoma. In the seminiferous tubules, particularly in SCs, AQPs are also widely expressed and seem to be implicated in the various stages of spermatogenesis. Like in hepatocytes, AQPs may be involved in maintaining energy homeostasis in these cells and have a major role in the metabolic cooperation established in the testicular tissue. Altogether, this information represents the mainstay of current and future investigation in an expanding field.

Structural and functional modifications of sertoli cells in the testis of adult follicle-stimulating hormone receptor knockout mice

Follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) plays important roles during testicular development and in the maintenance of spermatogenesis in the adult. However, the cellular events or pathways that FSH regulates to achieve these effects in Sertoli cells, where the FSH receptors (FSH-R) are located, is still not fully elucidated. The development of FSH-R knockout (FORKO) mice provides a model to examine alterations in testicular structure and function in its absence. To this end, light (LM) and electron microscopic (EM) analyses of perfusion-fixed testes of wild-type and FORKO mice of different ages were performed. Under the LM, a significant reduction was noted in the profile area of seminiferous tubules of FORKO mice compared with their wild-type counterparts at different ages. In addition, FORKO testes revealed large irregularly shaped spaces within the seminiferous epithelium, extending from the base to the lumen. Such spaces were often separated by anastomotic cords of spherical germ cells or completely surrounded elongating spermatids. This phenotype was restricted to half or less of the circumference of only some tubules, but was seen at all stages. EM analyses revealed that the spaces corresponded to an apparent accumulation of fluid in the Sertoli cell cytoplasm, coincident with an absence of the fine flocculent ground substance seen in wild-type mice. However, the Sertoli organelles, while less prominent, appeared intact and to be floating in the enlarged fluid-filled cytoplasm. Functionally, androgen-binding protein (ABP), a major secretory protein of Sertoli cells, was dramatically reduced in FORKO mice. These results suggest that FSH-R signaling normally maintains water balance in Sertoli cells in addition to regulating ABP production.

Ectoplasmic specializations in the Sertoli cell: new vistas based on genetic defects and testicular toxicology

Abstract The ectoplasmic specialization is a unique junctional complex formed in two cortical areas of the Sertoli cell in the mammalian testis: one near the base of the seminiferous epithelium forming the blood-testis barrier, and the other near the lumen of the seminiferous tubule embracing the acrosome region of the developing spermatids. The specialization consists of the Sertoli cell plasma membrane, a subsurface cistern of the endoplasmic reticulum and a layer of closely packed actin filaments that is sandwiched between the plasma membrane and the subsurface cistern. No functions of the specializations other than the blood-testis barrier have been established. However, over the past decade, knowledge about the ectoplasmic specialization has been steadily accumulating and, in particular, there has been a tremendous increase in knowledge based on molecular biological approaches to specialization-associated proteins, including tight junction-associated proteins, based on phenotype analyses of gene-knockout mice and mutant animals, and based on analyses of the effects of exogenous estrogens, so-called endocrine disruptors. Progress in studies on the ectoplasmic specialization will facilitate the elucidation of numerous important questions regarding spermatogenesis, including the pathogenesis of azoospermia and the mechanisms of action of endocrine disruptors.

Distribution of sodium-potassium ATPase in the rat testis and epididymis

Sodium-potassium ATPase (Na+K(+)-ATPase) is a ubiquitous plasma membrane enzyme which uses the hydrolysis of ATP to regulate cellular Na+ and K+ levels and fluid volume. This ion pumping action is also thought to be involved in fluid movement across certain epithelia. There are several different genes for this enzyme, some of which are tissue specific. Using an antibody specific for the catalytic subunit of canine kidney Na+K(+)-ATPase, we have localized immunoreactivity in the seminiferous and epididymal epithelium of rats of various ages. There was no specific staining of 10-day-old rat testis. Faint staining was detected at 13 days and appeared to be associated with the borders of Sertoli cells. At 16 days prominent apical and lateral staining but no basal staining of Sertoli cell membranes was observed. This type of distribution continued until spermatids were present in the epithelium. In the adult rat testis, specific staining was detected in Sertoli cell crypts associated with elongating spermatids, and on the apical and lateral Sertoli cell membrane. In some instances immunoreactivity was concentrated at presumed sites of junctional specializations. In the excurrent ducts of immature and mature rats, Na+K(+)-ATPase staining was heavy in the efferent ducts and somewhat lighter in the epididymis. In all regions, the staining was basolateral although there were variations in intensity among the different parts of the epididymis. These results show 1) that rat testis and epididymal Na+K(+)-ATPase share some immunological determinants with the canine enzyme; 2) that the epididymal enzyme is located in the conventional basolateral position; and 3) that the distribution of Sertoli cell Na+K(+)-ATPase is probably apical and lateral rather than basal.

A comparative study of Sertoli cell ectoplasmic specializations in selected non-mammalian vertebrates

Ectoplasmic specializations (ES) facing spermatids were studied in species representative of four classes of non-mammalian vertebrates (Pisces--bluegill; Amphibia--bullfrog; Reptilia--red eared turtle; Aves--domestic chicken). ES was not seen in the bluegill but was present in all other species studied. In the frog, turtle, and chicken, ES did not resemble its mammalian counterpart and could only be characterized by the presence of 6 nm filaments (presumedly actin) within the somatic cell facing the head region of elongating spermatids. ES filaments were sparse in the frog and were sometimes associated with more deeply situated endoplasmic reticulum. Turtle ES filaments were abundant and encircled the acrosomal region of the spermatid head and were delimited by fenestrated saccules of endoplasmic reticulum. In the chicken, ES filaments were prominent but less abundant than in the turtle. Six nanometer filaments of the chicken ES appeared in a tangled mass and were not associated with clearly defined endoplasmic reticulum. In the three species where ES was found, it first developed as spermatids became entrenched within the surrounding somatic cell. Neither cell elongation, nuclear elongation, or movement of the nucleus to the cell surface was synchronized with the onset of ES development. That ES development was seen concomitant with spermatid entrenchment and spermatid orientation suggested a role for ES in these processes. This hypothesis was further strengthened by observations in the fish where ES was lacking and where spermatid entrenchment within the somatic cell, did not occur. The study also supported the hypothesis that ES acts as a cytoskeletal mantle to which other cytoskeletal elements within the cell interact to affect the position of elongate spermatids within the epithelium. The dissolution of ES prior to spermiation and concomitant loss of a close relationship between cells suggests that ES is also related to somatic cell-germ cell adhesion and therefore plays an important role in the spermiation process.

Comparative study of cytoplasmic elimination in spermatids of selected mammalian species

In the transformation of a spermatid into a spermatozoon, cytoplasmic loss occurs, allowing the sperm to swim unhindered. Cytoplasmic loss takes place via elimination of the residual body and through structures known as tubulobulbar complexes. A determination of cytoplasmic loss in several species was undertaken by using high-resolution electron microscopic morphometric techniques. During the period that tubulobulbar complexes are present, an average 53% cytoplasmic loss was recorded for five species (guinea pig, 48.8 +/- 6.2% (SEM); monkey, 60.3 +/- 4.3%; opossum, 54.5 +/- 4.4%; rabbit, 46.9 +/- 2.7%; and rat, 55.7 +/- 4.9%), whereas there was essentially no loss or gain in cytoplasm during the same period for round spermatids. Surprisingly, during spermatid elongation an approximate 36% loss of cytoplasm was also recorded for five species (guinea pig, 50.1 +/- 6.3%; monkey, 30.0 +/- 15.4%; opossum, 25.4 +/- 9.0%; rabbit, 42.4 +/- 8.6%; and rat, 34.9 +/- 11.9%), which is only partially (approximately 60%) accounted for by fluid pumping from the nucleus during nuclear condensation. A densification of the cytoplasm of elongate spermatids, as compared with round spermatids, suggests fluid is also pumped from the elongating spermatid cytoplasm. Fluid loss from germ cells may contribute to the seminiferous tubule fluid, a fluid previously thought to be solely of Sertoli-cell origin.

Distribution of actin in isolated seminiferous epithelia and denuded tubule walls of the rat

We have studied the distribution of actin, using NBD-phallacidin as a probe, in isolated sheets of seminiferous epithelia and denuded tubule walls of the rat. Sheets of intact seminiferous epithelia were separated from tubule walls using EDTA in PBS. The isolated epithelia and denuded tubule walls were fixed, mounted on slides, made permeable with cold acetone (-20 degrees C), and then treated with NBD-phallacidin. Actin was observed in myoid cells, in ectoplasmic specializations of Sertoli cells, and in Sertoli cell regions adjacent to tubulobulbar processes of late spermatids. In myoid cells, filament bundles course in circular and longitudinal directions relative to the tubule wall. In Sertoli cells viewed at an angle perpendicular to the epithelial base, actin filaments in ectoplasmic specializations adjacent to junctional complexes circumscribe the bases of the cells. Filament bundles in ectoplasmic specializations adjacent to germ cells closely follow the contour of and are arranged parallel to the long axis of the developing acrosome. Sertoli cell regions adjacent to tubulobulbar processes of late spermatids stain intensely with NBD-phallacidin. Isolated seminiferous epithelia, combined with NBD-phallacidin as a probe for actin, provide an ideal model system in which to study further the contractile properties of Sertoli cell ectoplasmic specializations and the possible involvement of these structures in events that occur during spermatogenesis.

Arrangement and possible function of actin filament bundles in ectoplasmic specializations of ground squirrel Sertoli cells

We have investigated the arrangement and function of actin filament bundles in Sertoli cell ectoplasmic specializations found adjacent to junctional networks and in areas of adhesion to spermatogenic cells. Tissue was collected, from ground squirrel (Spermophilus spp.) testes, in three ways: seminiferous tubules were fragmented mechanically; segments of intact epithelium and denuded tubule walls were isolated by using EDTA in a phosphate-buffered salt solution; and isolated epithelia and denuded tubule walls were extracted in glycerol. To determine the arrangement of actin bundles, the tissue was fixed, mounted on slides, treated with cold acetone (-20 degrees C), and then exposed to nitrobenzoxadiazole-phallacidin. Myosin was localized using immunofluorescence. To investigate the hypothesis that ectoplasmic specializations are contractile, glycerinated models were exposed to exogenous ATP and Ca++; then contraction was assessed qualitatively by using nitrobenzoxadiazole-phallacidin as a marker. Actin bundles in ectoplasmic specializations adjacent to junctional networks circumscribe the bases of Sertoli cells. When intact epithelia are viewed from an angle perpendicular to the epithelial base, honeycomb staining patterns are observed. Filament bundles in Sertoli cell regions adjacent to spermatogenic cells dramatically change organization during spermatogenesis. Initially, the bundles circle the region of contact between the developing acrosome and nucleus. They then expand to cover the entire head. As the spermatid flattens, filaments on one side of the now saucer-shaped head orient themselves parallel to the germ cell axis while those on the other align perpendicularly to it. Before sperm release, all filaments course parallel to the rim of the head. Contrary to the results we obtained with myoid cells, we could not convincingly demonstrate myosin in ectoplasmic specializations or induce contraction of glycerinated models. Our data are consistent with the hypothesis that actin in ectoplasmic specializations of Sertoli cells may be more skeletal than contractile.

Ultrastructural observations on spermatozoa retained within the seminiferous epithelium after treatment with dibutyryl cyclic AMP

Spermiation was inhibited in the Syrian hamster by administering large doses of dibutyryl cyclic AMP. After treatment with dibutyryl cyclic AMP most stage VIII, IX, and X seminiferous tubules contained some mature spermatozoa within the seminiferous epithelium. The acrosomal membranes and plasma membranes of the unreleased spermatozoa remained intact, indicating that the spermatozoa had not been phagocytized by the Sertoli cells. Sertoli-spermatid junctional specializations were usually applied to the heads of the mature spermatozoa. The unreleased spermatozoa often appeared swollen with accumulated fluid located in the subacrosomal space. The accumulation of subacrosomal fluid in the unreleased spermatozoa seems to result from the absence of tubulobulbar complexes. That is, when tubulobular complexes fail to form the normal flow of cytoplasm into the tubulobular complexes is blocked resulting in an accumulation of fluid around the nucleus. Inhibition of spermiation may result from the absence of tubulobulbar complex formation. It is postulated that the tubulobulbar complex functions to transfer a chemical trigger from the maturing spermatid into the Sertoli cell. This chemical trigger may initiate the disappearance of the Sertoli-spermatid junctional specialization and induce spermiation.

Crystalloids of actin-like filaments in the Sertoli cell of the swine testis

Normal swine testes, congenital cryptorchid swine testes, and normal human tests were exposed to HMM (heavy meromyosin) after either glycerination or saponin treatment in order to determine whether the fine filaments composing the crystalloids in the Sertoli cells of the cryptorchid swine testes bind HMM to form arrowhead complexes. Short bundles of microfilaments observed in the basal part of the Sertoli cells in both normal and cryptorchid testes also bind HMM. Similar bundles of HMM-bound filaments are observed in the vicinity of spermatocytes. The periodicity of the arrowhead complexes is about 35 nm, and all arrowheads on a given filament point in the same direction. In addition, the polarity of the HMM-bound filaments in a given crystalloid or bundle is uni-directional. A mechanism for the formation of the swine crystalloids has been strongly support this hypothesis. Fine filaments of Charcot-Boettcher's crystalloid in human Sertoli cells did not bind HMM. Therefore the fine filaments of the human crystalloid are not actin-like in nature.

Ultrastructural localization of adenosine triphosphatase in the stellate reticulum, stratum intermedium and ameloblasts of the mouse molar

ATPase activity in the developing first mandibular molar of the mouse was demonstrated at the electron microscopic level with the method of Wachstein & Meisel (1957). It was localized along the cell surfaces of the ameloblast and stratum intermedium interface, the stratum intermedium and the stellate reticulum. The ATPase final reaction product was also present at the cell membranes of the proximal region of adjacent ameloblasts and extended to the level of the nuclei. The demonstration of ATPase mainly on the plasma membranes was similar to the observations by other investigators of various non-odontogenic cell types involved in the exchange of materials across plasma membranes.

Characterization of Sertoli cell-germ cell junctional specializations in dissociated testicular cells

To further characterize Sertoli cell-germ cell junctional specializations seminiferous tubules from sexually mature Sprague-Dawley rats were dissociated by enzymatic and mechanical methods. Ultrastructural analysis of cell suspensions prepared by incubation in collagenase alone or by mechanical methods revealed that spermatids remained attached to Sertoli cells or Sertoli cell fragments. Such cellular associations were found only between Sertoli cell fragments and spematids in which the developing acrosome had made contact with the plasma membrane (step 8 and subsequent steps of spermiogenesis). Furthermore, the fragments were confined to that region of the plasma membrane over the acrosome. The Sertoli cell half of this adhesive site displayed the typical elements of Sertoli cell junctions, filamentous bundles and associated cisterna of endoplasmic reticulum, in apposition to the spermatids. The spermatids demonstrated no surface specializations at the attachment sites. In contrast, in cell suspensions prepared with trypsin, spermatids were free of attachments to Sertoli cells or their fragments. These results demonstrate that: (1) the junctions act to bind cells together, (2) adhesive type contact is established between Sertoli cells and spermatids at step 8 and subsequent steps of spermiogenesis, (3) contact is restricted to the spermatid plasma membrane over the acrosome, and (4) spermatids can be freed from the junctional specializations by treatment with trypsin.

Electron microscopic localization of Mg2+ -dependent adenosine triphosphatase activity in the amphibian pancreas (Salamandra salamandra L. and Rana esculenta L.)

The ultrastructural distribution of Mg2+ -dependent adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) activity has been investigated in the salamander and frog pancreas by using glutaraldehyde fixations and a modified Wachstein-Meisel reaction medium. In both species the reaction product (lead phosphate) was found associated with the plasma membrane external side of all islet cell types (B-, A- and D-cells) and of acinar and ductular/centro-acinar cells. Except the apical pole of salamander acinar and centro-acinar cells, usually devoid of reaction, no preferential distribution of enzyme activity depending on endocrine or exocrine cell aspects could be observed. Other specific enzyme localizations included the mitochondria matrices, nucleoles, condensed nuclear chromatin, periaxolemmal spaces in nerve bundles and sometimes the cleft of neuro-glandular junctions. The occurrence of reaction deposits in connective tissue, in the cytoplasm of both islet and exocrine cells and in the nerve fiber axoplasm was considered as a possible diffusion artifact. The reaction intensity, but not its distribution, varied sensibly with the incubation period. 2-iodoacetamide and p-chlormercuribenzoic acid decreased the amount of reaction deposits at the level of all reactive sites and especially in mitochondria. The specificity of Mg2+ -ATPase demonstration in this paper is analysed taking into account several inherent shortcomings of the Wachstein-Meisel incubation medium and of the fixative. The different enzyme localizations, as well as their functional significances are discussed in relation with the findings of other authors.

Stability of the intra-epithelial component of the blood-testis barrier in epinephrine-induced testicular degeneration in Syrian hamsters

Adult male Syrian hamsters were given daily intraperitoneal injections of epinephrine (1.0 mg/kg) and papaverine, a vasodilator, (60 mg/kg) for a period of ten days. After the treatment period, lanthanum and horseradish peroxidase tracer studies were used to examine the intra-epithelial component of the blood-testis barrier. Degenerating tubules often exhibited only Sertoli cells and spermatogonia, or Sertoli cells alone. Sertoli cell processes in the degenerating tubules often arched out from the main cell body to make contact with other Sertoli cell processes, forming a series of vacuole-like spaces in the germinal epithelium, adluminal to the Sertoli-Sertoli junctions. At the site of contact between these arching Sertoli cell processes one to eight tight junctions had formed with hexagonal arrays of Sertoli cell cytoplasmic filaments located immediately adjacent to these junctions. Cisternae of the Sertoli cell endoplasmic reticulum lay deep to the layer of cytoplasmic filaments. It appeared that these junctions had originated after the expulsion of the germinal elements of the seminiferous epithelium. Penetration of the tracers in the degenerating seminiferous tubules was prevented by what appeared to be normal Sertoli-Sertoli junctions located between apposed Sertoli cells, adluminal to the remaining spermatogonia when these resisted degeneration, or just adluminal to the basal lamina in those tubules in which spermatogonia were absent.

Observations on rat Sertoli ectoplasmic ('junctional') specializations in their association with germ cells of the rat testis

The ectoplasmic ('junctional') specialization, a subsurface modification of the Sertoli cell that is often seen facing germ cells, was studied in relation to the development and maturation of these germ cells. This structure is composed of subsurface bundles of filaments and more deeply placed endoplasmic reticulum. The data indicate that these subsurface modifications of Sertoli cells are reutilized in a cyclic fashion, being transferred from their position facing late spermatids to one opposing less mature germ cells. Ectoplasmic specializations appeared to function mechanically in grasping the heads of the spermatids which are undergoing the elongation and maturation phases of spermiogenesis rather than in actually attaching Sertoli cells to these germ cells. It is postulated that the ectoplasmic specialization imparts rigidity to that area of the Sertoli cell that surrounds the head region of the germ cell, forming a recess and a mantle by which the germ cell may be moved toward the base or toward the surface of the seminiferous epithelium. The observed linkage of microtubules to the cisternae of the complex provided a morphological basis for the changes in the cytoarchietecture of the Sertoli cell, which must accompany these movements.