Sullivan Robert, Saez Fabrice, Girouard Julie, Frenette Gilles
Département d'Obstétrique-Gynécologie, Centre de Recherche en Biologie de la Reproduction, Faculté de Médecine, Université Laval, Canada.
Blood Cells Mol Dis. 2005 Jul-Aug;35(1):1-10. doi: 10.1016/j.bcmd.2005.03.005.
Even tough differentiated spermatozoa are unable of transcriptional or translational activity; the sperm surface undergoes major modifications in macromolecules composition during the transit along the male reproductive tract. This is the result of sequential, well orchestrated interactions between the male reproductive tract secretions and the transiting male gamete. This is particularly true when spermatozoa transit along the epididymis. The epididymis is a long convoluted tubules in which the spermatozoa leaving the testis have to transit. The unraveled epididymal tubule can be as long as 80 m in stallion, and the transit time of spermatozoa is of 3-12 days depending on the species. The epididymis is usually divided in three segments: the caput (proximal part), the corpus, and cauda. While the cauda epididymides acts as a sperm reservoir, the caput and corpus are responsible for sperm maturation. This means that, under androgen control, the epididymal epithelium secretes proteins that will interact sequentially with sperm surface. Some of the sperm proteins acquired during maturation along the excurrent duct behave as integral membrane proteins. In fact, some epididymal originating proteins are glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI)-anchored to the sperm plasma membrane. Our laboratory has shown that some of these proteins are secreted in an apocrine manner by the epididymal epithelium and are associated to exosomes, called epididymosomes. Epididymosomes are rich in sphingomyelin and are characterized by a high cholesterol/phospholipids ratio. Many proteins are associated to epididymosomes, some of which are selectively transferred to spermatozoa during the epididymal transit. We have identified some of these exosomes associated proteins transferred to the maturing spermatozoa. These include two enzymes involved in the polyol pathway: an aldose reductase and a sorbitol dehydrogenase. A cytokine named MIF (macrophage migration inhibitory factor) is another protein associated to exosomes who is transferred to spermatozoa during the epididymal transit. We hypothesized that both the polyol pathway and MIF secreted in an apocrine fashion by the epididymal epithelium modulate sperm motility during the transit along the male reproductive tract. Finally, P25b, belonging to a family of sperm surface proteins (P26h/P34H) necessary for the binding to the surface of the egg, is also acquired through the interaction between epididymosomes and the male gamete. In vitro studies have defined the conditions of protein transfer when epididymal spermatozoa are co-incubated with epididymosomes. The transfer of selected proteins to specific membrane domains of spermatozoa is saturable, temperature and pH-dependent, being optimal at pH 6.5. The presence of zinc in the incubation medium, but not of calcium neither magnesium, significantly increases the efficiency of protein transfer. These results show that exosomes play a role in sperm epididymal maturation which is an essential event to produce male gametes with optimal fertilizing ability.
尽管分化后的精子无法进行转录或翻译活动,但在沿雄性生殖道运输过程中,精子表面的大分子组成会发生重大变化。这是雄性生殖道分泌物与运输中的雄配子之间一系列精心编排的相互作用的结果。当精子沿附睾运输时尤其如此。附睾是一条长长的盘绕小管,离开睾丸的精子必须在其中运输。在种马中,展开的附睾管可达80米长,精子的运输时间因物种而异,为3至12天。附睾通常分为三段:头部(近端部分)、体部和尾部。附睾尾部充当精子储存库,而头部和体部则负责精子成熟。这意味着,在雄激素的控制下,附睾上皮分泌的蛋白质会依次与精子表面相互作用。在沿输出管成熟过程中获得的一些精子蛋白表现为整合膜蛋白。事实上,一些源自附睾的蛋白通过糖基磷脂酰肌醇(GPI)锚定在精子质膜上。我们实验室已经表明,其中一些蛋白由附睾上皮以顶浆分泌的方式分泌,并与外泌体(称为附睾小体)相关。附睾小体富含鞘磷脂,其特征是胆固醇/磷脂比例高。许多蛋白质与附睾小体相关,其中一些在附睾运输过程中被选择性地转移到精子上。我们已经鉴定出一些转移到成熟精子上的与这些外泌体相关的蛋白质。这些包括参与多元醇途径的两种酶:一种醛糖还原酶和一种山梨醇脱氢酶。一种名为MIF(巨噬细胞迁移抑制因子)的细胞因子是另一种与外泌体相关的蛋白质,它在附睾运输过程中转移到精子上。我们假设,附睾上皮以顶浆分泌方式分泌的多元醇途径和MIF在沿雄性生殖道运输过程中调节精子活力。最后,P25b属于与卵子表面结合所必需的精子表面蛋白家族(P26h/P34H),它也是通过附睾小体与雄配子之间的相互作用获得的。体外研究已经确定了附睾精子与附睾小体共同孵育时蛋白质转移的条件。选定蛋白质向精子特定膜结构域的转移是可饱和的,依赖于温度和pH值,在pH 6.5时最佳。孵育培养基中锌的存在,但不是钙和镁的存在,显著提高了蛋白质转移的效率。这些结果表明,外泌体在精子附睾成熟过程中发挥作用,这是产生具有最佳受精能力的雄配子的关键事件。