Essential Role of the Apolipoprotein E Receptor-2 in Sperm Development
The apolipoprotein (apo) E receptor-2 (apoER2) is a member of the low density lipoprotein receptor gene family and an important regulator of neuronal migration. It acts as a receptor for the signaling factor Reelin and provides positional cues to neurons that migrate to their proper position in the...
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Published in | The Journal of biological chemistry Vol. 278; no. 26; pp. 23989 - 23995 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
United States
American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
27.06.2003
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Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | The apolipoprotein (apo) E receptor-2 (apoER2) is a member of the low density lipoprotein receptor gene family and an important
regulator of neuronal migration. It acts as a receptor for the signaling factor Reelin and provides positional cues to neurons
that migrate to their proper position in the developing brain. Besides brain formation defects, apoER2-deficient mice also
exhibit male infertility. The role of the receptor in male reproduction, however, remained unclear. Here we demonstrate that
apoER2 is highly expressed in the initial segment of the epididymis, where it affects the functional expression of clusterin
and phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase (PHGPx), two proteins required for sperm maturation. Reduced PHGPx
expression in apoER2 knockout mice results in the inability of the sperm to regulate the cell volume and in abnormal sperm
morphology and immotility. Because insufficient expression of PHGPx is a major cause of infertility in men, these findings
not only highlight an important new function for apoER2 that is unrelated to neuronal migration, but they also suggest a
possible role for apoER2 in human infertility. |
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Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-2 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-1 content type line 23 ObjectType-Article-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 |
ISSN: | 0021-9258 1083-351X |
DOI: | 10.1074/jbc.M302157200 |