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Low Sperm Motility Is Determined by Abnormal Protein Modification during Epididymal Maturation

Harvard Dataverse (Africa Rice Center, Bioversity International, CCAFS, CIAT, IFPRI, IRRI and WorldFish)

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Title Low Sperm Motility Is Determined by Abnormal Protein Modification during Epididymal Maturation
 
Identifier https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/PABN5H
 
Creator Myung-Geol Pang
 
Publisher Harvard Dataverse
 
Description Purpose: During epididymal sperm maturation, spermatozoa acquire progressive motility through dynamic protein modifications.
However, the relationship between sequential protein modifications during epididymal sperm maturation and sperm motility and fertility has not yet been investigated. This study investigated whether sequential changes in fertility-related protein expression including that of enolase 1 (ENO1), ubiquinol-cytochrome c reductase core protein 1 and 2 (UQCRC1 and UQCRC2), and voltage-dependent anion channel 2 (VDAC2) in spermatozoa during epididymal maturation are related to bovine sperm motility. Moreover, we found that mitochondrial metabolism is closely related to fertility-related proteins.
Therefore, we investigated how the sequential modification of mitochondrial proteins during epididymal maturation regulates sperm motility.
Materials and Methods: To determine the differential protein expression in caput and cauda epididymal spermatozoa from low and high motility bulls, western blot analysis was performed. Moreover, signaling pathways were identified to understand
the mechanisms of regulation of sperm motility through the differential protein expression associated with fertilityrelated proteins.
Results: We found that ENO1 was substantially higher in the caput spermatozoa from low motility bulls than the caput and cauda spermatozoa from high motility bulls. However, ENO1 expression in low motility bull spermatozoa was downregulated
to a level comparable to that in the high motility bull spermatozoa during epididymal maturation. Moreover, there was a lack of modification of mitochondrial proteins, including glutathione peroxidase 4 and NADH:Ubiquinone Oxidoreductase
Core Subunit S8, in low motility bull spermatozoa during epididymal maturation, whereas active changes were detected in high motility bull spermatozoa.
Conclusions: Irregular modifications of mitochondrial proteins during epididymal sperm maturation may increase excessive ROS production and premature activation of spermatozoa during epididymal maturation. Consequently, spermatozoa may
lose their motility by the earlier consumption of their energy source and may be damaged by ROS during epididymal maturation, resulting in a decline in sperm motility and bull fertility.
 
Subject Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
 
Contributor Park, Hyun Jun