Both protamine-1 to protamine-2 mRNA ratio and Bcl2 mRNA content in testicular spermatids and ejaculated spermatozoa discriminate between fertile and infertile men
BACKGROUND Human sperm contain similar amounts of protamine-1 (P1) and protamine-2 (P2). Although aberrant protamine ratios have been observed in infertile men, functional evidence is provided by protamine knockout mice exhibiting male infertility. As sperm DNA integrity is known to be linked with D...
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Published in | Human reproduction (Oxford) Vol. 23; no. 1; pp. 11 - 16 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Oxford
Oxford University Press
01.01.2008
Oxford Publishing Limited (England) |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | BACKGROUND Human sperm contain similar amounts of protamine-1 (P1) and protamine-2 (P2). Although aberrant protamine ratios have been observed in infertile men, functional evidence is provided by protamine knockout mice exhibiting male infertility. As sperm DNA integrity is known to be linked with DNA fragmentation and apoptosis, we investigated whether the protamine ratio or Bcl2 content represent a reliable biomarker to discriminate fertile and infertile men. METHODS Real-time quantitative RT-PCR was used for P1, P2 and the apoptotic marker Bcl2 in testicular biopsies (TB; 74 infertile men versus 17 controls) and ejaculates (E; 95 infertile men versus 10 controls). RESULTS The P1–P2 mRNA ratio differed significantly between groups, namely 1:4 versus 1:3.2 in TB (P = 0.0038) and 1:1.7 versus 1:1 in E (P = 0.0002), for infertile men and controls, respectively. Bcl2 mRNA content was correlated with protamine mRNA ratio (P = 0.0250 for TB; P = 0.0003 for E). Infertile men exhibit a more than 10-fold (P = 0.0155 for TB; P = 7.0 × 10−6 for E) higher Bcl2 mRNA content versus controls. No correlation was found between absolute sperm density and the protamine mRNA ratio or Bcl2 mRNA content. No significant correlation was demonstrated with fertilization rate after ICSI and either protamine ratio or Bcl2 content. CONCLUSIONS We found significantly aberrant protamine ratios and a higher Bcl2 content in TB and E of infertile men compared to controls, suggesting that these molecules may be useful biomarkers for predicting male infertility. |
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Bibliography: | ark:/67375/HXZ-80DB045R-F istex:297A71CCD158E738692E1B0A489C4A61583FA1E1 ArticleID:dem363 ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
ISSN: | 0268-1161 1460-2350 |
DOI: | 10.1093/humrep/dem363 |