Cortactin depletion results in short tubulobulbar complexes and spermiation failure in rat testes
| Autor: | Marc De Asis, A. Wayne Vogl, J'Nelle S. Young, Julian A. Guttman |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2012 |
| Předmět: |
Spermiation
QH301-705.5 Science Tubulobulbar complexes Cell junction Filamentous actin General Biochemistry Genetics and Molecular Biology 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Testis Fluorescence microscope medicine Biology (General) Spermatogenesis Actin 030304 developmental biology 0303 health sciences biology Sertoli cell Epithelium Cell biology medicine.anatomical_structure Immunology biology.protein General Agricultural and Biological Sciences Cortactin 030217 neurology & neurosurgery Research Article |
| Zdroj: | Biology Open, Vol 1, Iss 11, Pp 1069-1077 (2012) Biology Open |
| ISSN: | 2046-6390 |
| Popis: | Summary Tubulobulbar complexes are actin-related endocytic structures that form at sites of intercellular attachment in the seminiferous epithelium and are proposed to internalize intact junctions. In this study, we test the prediction that altering the structure/function of tubulobulbar complexes results in failure to release mature spermatids from Sertoli cells. We used an in vivo knockdown strategy to target cortactin, a component of tubulobulbar complexes, in Sprague Dawley rats. In each animal, one testis was surgically injected with cortactin siRNA reagents and the other testis was injected with non-targeting siRNA. After three days, experimental and control testes were processed for immunoblotting, electron microscopy or immunofluorescence microscopy. In testis sections immunostained for cortactin or labeled for filamentous actin, fluorescence microscopy revealed that tubulobulbar complexes were shorter in siRNA-treated testes relative to controls. Significantly, in the knockdown testes, spermiation was delayed in some tubules and had failed in others. When evaluated by electron microscopy, adhesion complexes (ectoplasmic specializations) remained associated with mature spermatids that failed to be released from Sertoli cells. Immunoblots both of whole testis lysates and of isolated seminiferous epithelial lysates confirmed that cortactin expression was knocked-down in experimental testes and in the seminiferous epithelium respectively, relative to controls. Moreover, in testes injected with siRNA reagents with a dye modification on one of the four targeting siRNA sequences, dye clusters were detected at the base of the epithelium confirming that the reagents entered Sertoli cells. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that tubulobulbar complexes internalize intercellular junctions and that they are a significant component of the sperm release mechanism. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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