Expression of estrogen receptors, PELP1, and SRC in human spermatozoa and their associations with semen quality

Abstract

Sperm cells are target cells for both estrogens and xenoestrogens. Due to the specific structure of spermatozoa, these hormonal compounds may act on sperm in a non-genomic mechanism only. However, the ESR-mediated signaling pathways are still poorly understood. In this study, we obtained 119 samples from male participants of Caucasian descent who donated semen for standard analysis. We analyzed gene expression of estrogen receptors (ESR1 and ESR2) and their coregulators—proline-, glutamic acid-, and leucine-rich protein 1 (PELP1), and cellular kinase c-Src (SRC). RNA level was established using reverse-transcribed RNA as a template, followed by a polymerase chain reaction. Proteins’ presence was confirmed by western blot and immunocytochemistry techniques. “Normal” values of semen parameters were defined as follows: > 32% sperm with progressive motility, > 4% sperm cells with normal morphology, > 15 × 106 sperm per mL, > 58% live spermatozoa and leukocyte amount < 106 cells per mL, according to WHO 2010 reference. Semen parameters that deviated from these “normal” values were labeled as “abnormal”. Gene expression ratios revealed significant, moderate, and negative correlations for ESR1/ESR2 and weak, negative ESR2/PELP1 correlations in the subgroup of patients with abnormal values of semen parameters. In addition, SRC/PELP1 was moderately and positively correlated in the subgroup with parameters within the reference values established by WHO 2010. Our study showed that both PELP1 scaffolding protein and SRC kinase might influence semen quality via ESRs. It seems that not the expression of a single gene may affect the sperm quality, but more gene-to-gene mutual ratio. Characterization of estrogen-signaling pathway-related genes’ modulated expression in sperm cells could aid in better understanding sperm biology and quality.

Indications of Endocrine Disruptor Effects of JP-5 Jet Fuel Using a Rat-Model Reproductive Study and an In Vitro Human Hormone Receptor Assay

“…There were no negative effects on sperm count (Figure 8a) or motility (Figure 8b-d), but there was a trending, non-significant increase in path linearity for sperm (Figure 8e) which is not normally looked at as an adverse effect, since linearity has a relationship with fertilization success. In context with other findings in this study that indicate JP-5 as being capable of regulating estrogen receptor activity, as discussed further below, it should be noted that if this increased path linearity for sperm exposed to JP-5 holds true, a possible explanation could be that estrogen receptors present in sperm have been shown to regulate motility [21], so while attributing the observation to JP-5 exposure is only a remote possibility, it could warrant further study.…”

“…There was a trending increase in sperm path linearity from rats in the JP-5 2000 mg/kg group compared to the control (Figure 8e). The data failed normality, and the Kruskal-Wallis one-way ANOVA yielded H = 5.862 (df = 2), p = 0.053 (n = [19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. A direct comparison between the control and the JP-5 2000 mg/kg group data using a two-tailed, unpaired t-test yielded p = 0.04.…”

“…The final weight for the male rats appeared to be slightly, but significantly, dose-dependently affected by JP-5 exposure (Figure 2a). The analysis of the male final weights using the one-way ANOVA revealed a significant difference across groups, with F(2, 64) = 15.136, p < 0.001 (n = [19][20][21][22][23][24], and the multiple comparison using the Holm-Sidak method yielded a significant reduction in the weight of rats in the JP-5 2000 mg/kg group compared to the control (t = 5.479, p < 0.001) and also in the JP-5 750 mg/kg group compared to the control (t = 3.019, p = 0.007). Rats in the JP-5 2000 mg/kg group had reduced weight compared to rats in the JP-5 750 mg/kg group, with t = 2.641, p = 0.010.…”

Abnormality Determination of Spermatozoa Motility Using Gaussian Mixture Model and Matching-based Algorithm

“…3) Spermatozoa localization is a stage to find areas that are suspected of being spermatozoa. In looking for areas that are suspected to be sperm, the method used is to look for contours [63] [64]. Contour is a condition caused by changes in intensity in neighbouring pixels.…”