Hyperactive reactive oxygen species impair function of porcine Sertoli cells via suppression of surface protein ITGB1 and connexin-43

Zoological Research
Dan-Chen ZhangKang Zou

Abstract

Gap junctions regulate intercellular communication between Sertoli cells and germ cells in male testes and play vital functions in spermatogenesis. Many factors in animal breeding and husbandry can induce oxidative stress, which can impair the testis microenvironment and male animal fertility. However, the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. Recently, we identified that androgen signals promote the expression of connexin-43 (Cx43), a key component of gap junctions, to regulate spermatogenesis. Thus, we asked whether hyperactive reactive oxygen species (ROS) can impair gap junctions by interfering with Cx43 in porcine testes. Using a porcine Sertoli cell in vitro system, we found that hyperactive ROS caused extensive apoptosis in Sertoli cells, remarkable decrease in Cx43 expression, and failed maintenance of co-cultured spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs), indicating that ROS impaired the function of Sertoli cells and promoted loss of SSCs. This observation provides a possible mechanism for the impact of ROS on fertility of male animals.

Citations

Apr 1, 2020·Microbiology Australia·John S Mackenzie, David W Smith
Apr 8, 2020·Expert Opinion on Biological Therapy·Paolo TarantinoGiuseppe Curigliano
Aug 26, 2020·Cancer Communications·Michael Mints, Itay Tirosh
Aug 20, 2020·Expert Opinion on Drug Delivery·Rachel Yoon Kyung ChangHak-Kim Chan
Jun 14, 2020·American Journal of Reproductive Immunology : AJRI·Emily R BryanAlison J Carey
Oct 19, 2020·Journal of Clinical Laboratory Analysis·Manxi ZhengMin Liu

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Methods Mentioned

BETA
Assay
flow cytometry

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Apoptosis

Apoptosis is a specific process that leads to programmed cell death through the activation of an evolutionary conserved intracellular pathway leading to pathognomic cellular changes distinct from cellular necrosis

Related Papers

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
Santhi SridharanPaul S Cooke
The International Journal of Biochemistry & Cell Biology
Jerome GilleronDominique Segretain
© 2021 Meta ULC. All rights reserved