Use of organ culture to study the human fetal testis development: effect of retinoic acid
Abstract
In human, the chronology of the testicular development has been extensively studied, but the factors implicated in the onset and the regulation of gametogenesis and steroidogenesis remain hardly known. To identify these factors, we developed an organ culture system for human fetal testes recovered during the first trimester (6-12 wk) of gestation. We first aimed at investigating the characteristics of this system by comparing the in vivo and in vitro gametogenesis and steroidogenesis. Second, we used organ culture to investigate the effect on the human testicular functions of retinoic acid (RA), previously described as a regulator of gonadal development in rodents. Organ culture proved to be an efficient tool for studying the early development of the testicular functions. Indeed, this system was able to maintain satisfactory development of the germ cells and Leydig cells in the absence of any added factor. For older fetuses, the number of germ cells decreased in culture and the LH was necessary to maintain the steroidogenic activity. The addition of 10(-6) m RA decreased the total number of germ cells in the fetal testis at all studied stages. This resulted from an increase in apoptosis, which slightly exceeded the increase of ...Continue Reading
Citations
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
Biosynthetic Transformations
Biosyntheic transformtions are multi-step, enzyme-catalyzed processes where substrates are converted into more complex products in living organisms. Simple compounds are modified, converted into other compounds, or joined together to form macromolecules. Discover the latest research on biosynthetic transformations here.