Center for Molecular Medicine and Genetics, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit, MI 48201, USA.
Nucleic Acids Res. 2013 Apr;41(7):4104-17. doi: 10.1093/nar/gkt132. Epub 2013 Mar 6.
Increasing attention has focused on the significance of RNA in sperm, in light of its contribution to the birth and long-term health of a child, role in sperm function and diagnostic potential. As the composition of sperm RNA is in flux, assigning specific roles to individual RNAs presents a significant challenge. For the first time RNA-seq was used to characterize the population of coding and non-coding transcripts in human sperm. Examining RNA representation as a function of multiple methods of library preparation revealed unique features indicative of very specific and stage-dependent maturation and regulation of sperm RNA, illuminating their various transitional roles. Correlation of sperm transcript abundance with epigenetic marks suggested roles for these elements in the pre- and post-fertilization genome. Several classes of non-coding RNAs including lncRNAs, CARs, pri-miRNAs, novel elements and mRNAs have been identified which, based on factors including relative abundance, integrity in sperm, available knockout data of embryonic effect and presence or absence in the unfertilized human oocyte, are likely to be essential male factors critical to early post-fertilization development. The diverse and unique attributes of sperm transcripts that were revealed provides the first detailed analysis of the biology and anticipated clinical significance of spermatozoal RNAs.
越来越多的人关注到 RNA 在精子中的重要性，因为它不仅与孩子的出生和长期健康有关，而且还影响精子的功能和具有诊断潜力。鉴于精子 RNA 的组成不断变化，为个别 RNA 分配特定的功能具有重大挑战。本研究首次采用 RNA-seq 技术来描述人类精子中编码和非编码转录本的群体。研究人员通过检查不同文库制备方法的 RNA 表达情况，揭示了精子 RNA 非常具体且与阶段相关的成熟和调控的独特特征，阐明了它们的各种过渡作用。精子转录物丰度与表观遗传标记的相关性表明这些元素在受精前和受精后基因组中具有作用。研究还鉴定了几类非编码 RNA，包括长链非编码 RNA、环状 RNA、pri-miRNA、新型元素和 mRNA。这些 RNA 可能是至关重要的男性因素，具有相对丰度、精子完整性、胚胎效应的敲除数据可用性以及在未受精的人类卵母细胞中的存在或缺失等特征，它们可能对受精后早期发育具有重要作用。本研究揭示了精子转录物的多样性和独特属性，为精子 RNA 的生物学和预期的临床意义提供了首次详细分析。
