Gervasi M G, Visconti P E
Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, USA.
Andrology. 2017 Mar;5(2):204-218. doi: 10.1111/andr.12320.
After leaving the testis, spermatozoa have not yet acquired the ability to move progressively and are unable to fertilize oocytes. To become fertilization competent, they must go through an epididymal maturation process in the male, and capacitation in the female tract. Epididymal maturation can be defined as those changes occurring to spermatozoa in the epididymis that render the spermatozoa the ability to capacitate in the female tract. As part of this process, sperm cells undergo a series of biochemical and physiological changes that require incorporation of new molecules derived from the epididymal epithelium, as well as post-translational modifications of endogenous proteins synthesized during spermiogenesis in the testis. This review will focus on epididymal maturation events, with emphasis in recent advances in the understanding of the molecular basis of this process.
离开睾丸后，精子尚未获得进行性运动的能力，也无法使卵母细胞受精。要具备受精能力，它们必须在雄性体内经历附睾成熟过程，并在雌性生殖道中经历获能过程。附睾成熟可定义为精子在附睾中发生的变化，这些变化使精子能够在雌性生殖道中获能。作为这一过程的一部分，精子细胞会经历一系列生化和生理变化，这需要整合来自附睾上皮的新分子，以及对睾丸精子发生过程中合成的内源性蛋白质进行翻译后修饰。本综述将重点关注附睾成熟事件，尤其着重于对这一过程分子基础理解的最新进展。
