Jiménez-Trejo F, Coronado-Mares I, Boeta M, González-Santoyo I, Vigueras-Villaseñor R, Arriaga-Canon C, Herrera L A, Tapia-Rodríguez M
National Institute of Pediatrics, Coyoacán, Mexico City, Mexico.
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics, National Autonomous University of Mexico, University City, Mexico City, Mexico.
Histol Histopathol. 2018 Sep;33(9):951-958. doi: 10.14670/HH-11-989. Epub 2018 Apr 16.
Assisted reproductive techniques have been used on several domestic animals to preserve desirable traits in strains of high genetic and commercial value; however in equines its efficiency rate is relatively low. To increase the conception ratio in stallions, some research groups have used pharmacological treatments which promote sperm hyperactivation in order to increase male's fertility rates. In this way, our previous work suggests that serotonin (5-HT) could be a good pharmacological candidate that facilitates conception rate in domestic horses. 5-HT is a neurohormone involved in several reproductive processes, i.e., it enhances hyperactivation, motility, and promotes the acrosome reaction in mammalian sperm, but it has not been described in the stallion sperm yet. Therefore, using both immunofluorescence and western blot techniques, we searched for and found some serotonin markers such as 5-HT, 5-HT1B, 5-HT2A, 5-HT₃ receptors, both TPH1 and MAOA enzymes, and serotonin transporter (5-HTT) in stallion sperm. In addition, we found a non-neuroendocrine cell, V-MAT₁ transporter, which has not been previously reported in mammalian sperm. Our results suggest that serotoninergic system is present in stallion sperm, which could be a pharmacological target to increase the conception rates in domestic horses.
辅助生殖技术已应用于多种家畜，以保留具有高遗传和商业价值品系中的优良性状；然而在马中，其效率相对较低。为了提高种马的受孕率，一些研究小组采用了促进精子超激活的药物治疗，以提高雄性的生育率。通过这种方式，我们之前的研究表明，血清素（5-羟色胺，5-HT）可能是提高家马受孕率的一种良好的药物候选物。5-HT是一种参与多种生殖过程的神经激素，即它能增强超激活、活力，并促进哺乳动物精子的顶体反应，但在种马精子中尚未有相关描述。因此，我们运用免疫荧光和蛋白质印迹技术，在种马精子中寻找并发现了一些血清素标志物，如5-HT、5-HT1B、5-HT2A、5-HT₃受体、TPH1和MAOA酶以及血清素转运体（5-HTT）。此外，我们还发现了一种非神经内分泌细胞，即V-MAT₁转运体，此前在哺乳动物精子中尚未有过报道。我们的研究结果表明，种马精子中存在血清素能系统，可以作为提高家马受孕率的一个药物靶点。
