Localization of hormone-sensitive lipase to rat Sertoli cells and its expression in developing and degenerating testes.

Using in situ hybridization, hormone-sensitive lipase was found to be expressed in a stage-dependent manner in Sertoli cells of rat testis. No expression was found in Leydig cells but expression in spermatids could not be excluded. These results suggest a role for hormone-sensitive lipase in the metabolism of lipid droplets in Sertoli cells, in contrast to its previously proposed function in steroid biosynthesis. The expression of testicular hormone-sensitive lipase mRNA and protein, both larger in size compared to other tissues, coincided with the onset of spermatogenesis and was dependent on scrotal localization of the testis, suggesting a temperature-dependent, pretranslational regulation of expression.