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Liu F, Liu X, Liu X, Li T, Zhu P, Liu Z, Xue H, Wang W, Yang X, Liu J, Han W. Integrated Analyses of Phenotype and Quantitative Proteome of CMTM4 Deficient Mice Reveal Its Association with Male Fertility. Mol Cell Proteomics 2019; 18:1070-1084. [PMID: 30867229 PMCID: PMC6553932 DOI: 10.1074/mcp.ra119.001416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The chemokine-like factor (CKLF)-like MARVEL transmembrane domain-containing family (CMTM) is a gene family that has been implicated in male reproduction. CMTM4 is an evolutionarily conserved member that is highly expressed in the testis. However, its function in male fertility remains unknown. Here, we demonstrate that CMTM4 is associated with spermatogenesis and sperm quality. Using Western blotting and immunohistochemical analyses, we found CMTM4 expression to be decreased in poor-quality human spermatozoa, old human testes, and testicular biopsies with nonobstructive azoospermia. Using CRISPR-Cas9 technology, we knocked out the Cmtm4 gene in mice. These Cmtm4 knockout (KO) mice showed reduced testicular daily sperm production, lower epididymal sperm motility and increased proportion of abnormally backward-curved sperm heads and bent sperm midpieces. These mice also had an evident sub-fertile phenotype, characterized by low pregnancy rates on prolonged breeding with wild type female mice, reduced in vitro fertilization efficiency and a reduced percentage of acrosome reactions. We then performed quantitative proteomic analysis of the testes, where we identified 139 proteins to be downregulated in Cmtm4-KO mice, 100 (71.9%) of which were related to sperm motility and acrosome reaction. The same proteomic analysis was performed on sperm, where we identified 3588 proteins with 409 being differentially regulated in Cmtm4-KO mice. Our enrichment analysis showed that upregulated proteins were enriched with nucleosomal DNA binding functions and the downregulated proteins were enriched with actin binding functions. These findings elucidate the roles of CMTM4 in male fertility and demonstrates its potential as a promising molecular candidate for sperm quality assessment and the diagnosis or treatment of male infertility.
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Affiliation(s)
- FuJun Liu
- From the ‡Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology (Ministry of Health), Peking University Center for Human Disease Genomics, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - XueXia Liu
- §Department of Central Laboratory, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
- ¶Shandong Research Centre for Stem Cell Engineering, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
| | - Xin Liu
- §Department of Central Laboratory, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
- ¶Shandong Research Centre for Stem Cell Engineering, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
| | - Ting Li
- From the ‡Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology (Ministry of Health), Peking University Center for Human Disease Genomics, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Peng Zhu
- §Department of Central Laboratory, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
- ¶Shandong Research Centre for Stem Cell Engineering, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
| | - ZhengYang Liu
- From the ‡Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology (Ministry of Health), Peking University Center for Human Disease Genomics, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Hui Xue
- From the ‡Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology (Ministry of Health), Peking University Center for Human Disease Genomics, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - WenJuan Wang
- ‖Reproduction Medical Center, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Yantai 264000, Shandong, P.R. China
| | - XiuLan Yang
- From the ‡Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology (Ministry of Health), Peking University Center for Human Disease Genomics, Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Juan Liu
- §Department of Central Laboratory, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
- ¶Shandong Research Centre for Stem Cell Engineering, Affiliated Yantai Yuhuangding Hospital of Qingdao University, Shandong Province, 264000, China
| | - WenLing Han
- From the ‡Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Peking University Health Science Center, Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology (Ministry of Health), Peking University Center for Human Disease Genomics, Beijing, 100191, China;
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Darbey A, Smith LB. Deliverable transgenics & gene therapy possibilities for the testes. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2018; 468:81-94. [PMID: 29191697 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2017.11.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2017] [Revised: 11/24/2017] [Accepted: 11/24/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Male infertility and hypogonadism are clinically prevalent conditions with a high socioeconomic burden and are both linked to an increased risk in cardiovascular-metabolic diseases and earlier mortality. Therefore, there is an urgent need to better understand the causes and develop new treatments for these conditions that affect millions of men. The accelerating advancement in gene editing and delivery technologies promises improvements in both diagnosis as well as affording the opportunity to develop bespoke treatment options which would both prove beneficial for the millions of individuals afflicted with these reproductive disorders. In this review, we summarise the systems developed and utilised for the delivery of gene therapy and discuss how each of these systems could be applied for the development of a gene therapy system in the testis and how they could be of use for the future diagnosis and repair of common male reproductive disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annalucia Darbey
- MRC Centre for Reproductive Health, University of Edinburgh, The Queen's Medical Research Institute, 47 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh EH16 4TJ, UK
| | - Lee B Smith
- MRC Centre for Reproductive Health, University of Edinburgh, The Queen's Medical Research Institute, 47 Little France Crescent, Edinburgh EH16 4TJ, UK; School of Environmental and Life Sciences, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW 2308, Australia.
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Penny GM, Cochran RB, Pihlajoki M, Kyrönlahti A, Schrade A, Häkkinen M, Toppari J, Heikinheimo M, Wilson DB. Probing GATA factor function in mouse Leydig cells via testicular injection of adenoviral vectors. Reproduction 2017; 154:455-467. [PMID: 28710293 PMCID: PMC5589507 DOI: 10.1530/rep-17-0311] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2017] [Revised: 07/09/2017] [Accepted: 07/14/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Testicular Leydig cells produce androgens essential for proper male reproductive development and fertility. Here, we describe a new Leydig cell ablation model based on Cre/Lox recombination of mouse Gata4 and Gata6, two genes implicated in the transcriptional regulation of steroidogenesis. The testicular interstitium of adult Gata4flox/flox ; Gata6flox/flox mice was injected with adenoviral vectors encoding Cre + GFP (Ad-Cre-IRES-GFP) or GFP alone (Ad-GFP). The vectors efficiently and selectively transduced Leydig cells, as evidenced by GFP reporter expression. Three days after Ad-Cre-IRES-GFP injection, expression of androgen biosynthetic genes (Hsd3b1, Cyp17a1 and Hsd17b3) was reduced, whereas expression of another Leydig cell marker, Insl3, was unchanged. Six days after Ad-Cre-IRES-GFP treatment, the testicular interstitium was devoid of Leydig cells, and there was a concomitant loss of all Leydig cell markers. Chromatin condensation, nuclear fragmentation, mitochondrial swelling, and other ultrastructural changes were evident in the degenerating Leydig cells. Liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry demonstrated reduced levels of androstenedione and testosterone in testes from mice injected with Ad-Cre-IRES-GFP. Late effects of treatment included testicular atrophy, infertility and the accumulation of lymphoid cells in the testicular interstitium. We conclude that adenoviral-mediated gene delivery is an expeditious way to probe Leydig cell function in vivo Our findings reinforce the notion that GATA factors are key regulators of steroidogenesis and testicular somatic cell survival.Free Finnish abstract: A Finnish translation of this abstract is freely available at http://www.reproduction-online.org/content/154/4/455/suppl/DC2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gervette M Penny
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Rebecca B Cochran
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Marjut Pihlajoki
- Children's HospitalUniversity of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Antti Kyrönlahti
- Children's HospitalUniversity of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Anja Schrade
- Children's HospitalUniversity of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Merja Häkkinen
- University of Eastern FinlandSchool of Pharmacy, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Jorma Toppari
- Department of PhysiologyInstitute of Biomedicine, University of Turku and Department of Pediatrics, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Markku Heikinheimo
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Children's HospitalUniversity of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - David B Wilson
- Department of Pediatrics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
- Department of Developmental BiologyWashington University School of Medicine, St. Louis Children's Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
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Different fixative methods influence histological morphology and TUNEL staining in mouse testes. Reprod Toxicol 2016; 60:53-61. [PMID: 26820454 DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2016.01.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2015] [Revised: 01/11/2016] [Accepted: 01/22/2016] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Abstract
Society of Toxicologic Pathology has recommended mDF to fix testes since 2002. However, subsequent studies showed that false TUNEL-positive cells were observed in mDF-fixed testes. This study compared the effects of different fixation methods on histology and TUNEL staining in mouse testes. Results showed that fixation for 24 or 36h in mDF provided better morphologic details in untreated testes, but markedly enhanced false TUNEL-positive staining. To optimize the fixation, testes were fixed using mDF for 6h and then PFA for 18h. Interestingly, fixation using mDF/PFA manifested better morphologic details, and rarely caused false TUNEL-positive cells in testes. Finally, we examined germ cell apoptosis in testes using mDF/PFA fixation in cadmium-treated mice. As expected, cadmium triggered germ cell apoptosis which was well visualized in the mDF/PFA fixed testes. Taken together, mDF plus PFA fixation not only minimizes false TUNEL-positive cells, but also provides integrated morphologic details in testes.
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