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#male fertility

3 public questions tagged with this topic.

Spermatogonial stem cells are classified as:

In mammalian testis seminiferous tubules, spermatogonial stem cells reside on basement membrane, maintained by glial-derived neurotrophic factor GDNF secreted by Sertoli nurse cells activating Ret and Gfra1 receptors plus FGF2 and CSF1 from interstitial Leydig cells. Functional transplantation demonstrates single SSC can repopulate experimentally emptied testis and reinitiate complete spermatogenesis generating functional spermatozoa continuously. Although defined culture conditions with growth factors may reveal in vitro plasticity toward pluripotency, physiological lineage tracing confirms essentially exclusive sperm production throughout adult life, establishing unipotent classification despite remarkable self-renewal capacity.

Ref: Kanatsu-Shinohara et al., Cell 2003; De Rooij, Reproduction 2006: Spermatogonial unipotent in vivo self-renewing.

Sperm-specific calcium channel in hyperactivation:

Hyperactivation, characterized by high-amplitude asymmetric flagellar beating generating enhanced thrust for cumulus and zona penetration, depends absolutely on calcium entry through CatSper, sperm-specific voltage and pH sensitive calcium channel complex localized to principal piece flagellum. Subunits CatSper1-4 plus auxiliary proteins form heteromeric pore gated by intracellular alkalinization and progesterone removing endocannabinoid inhibition. Calcium influx activates calmodulin, altering dynein sliding pattern. CatSper knockout males are infertile despite normal counts, sperm unable to hyperactivate or ascend oviduct, confirming channel indispensability for fertilization competence, species propagation, reproductive fitness and successful penetration.

Ref: Ren et al., Nature 2001: CatSper calcium channel required for hyperactivation and male fertility in mammals.