Levels of P34H, a sperm protein of epididymal origin, as a predictor of conventional in vitro fertilization outcome

Sullivan, Robert; Légaré, Christine; Villeneuve, Marc; Foliguet, B; Bissonnette, François

doi:10.1016/j.fertnstert.2005.10.070

Cited by 31 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…DCXR is involved in sperm binding to the egg's zona pellucida [10][11][12][13].Whereas DCXR is always associated to spermatozoa of fertile men, it is absent in 40% of men presenting with idiopathic infertility [14]. DCXR is thus a marker of epididymal sperm maturation in men, and can be used to identify epididymal dysfunction involved in male fertility [13,15,16]. Under vasectomy, the gene encoding DCXR is not expressed by the corpus epididymidis as in normal men [17], but in the proximal caput [18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Vasectomy on Gene Expression Profiling along the Human Epididymis1

Thimon¹,

Calvo²,

Koukoui³

et al. 2008

Biology of Reproduction

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Worldwide, almost 100 million men rely on vasectomy for male contraceptive purposes. Due to changes in their personal lives, an increasing number of these men request surgical vasectomy reversal. Unfortunately, a significant proportion of these men remain infertile, despite the reestablishment of patent ducts, possibly due to epididymal damage caused by vasectomy. In animal models, vasectomy affects different epididymal physiological and biochemical parameters. However, the consequences of vasectomy on epididymal function are poorly understood. Furthermore, results obtained with animal models cannot be extrapolated to humans to understand the consequences of vasectomy on epididymal function. Gene expression along the epididymis is highly regulated. We previously showed that the human epididymal expression pattern of two genes is altered after vasectomy. To complete the list of epididymal genes affected by vasectomy, we analyzed the epididymal gene expression pattern of three vasectomized donors using the Affymetrix human GeneChip U133 Plus 2. These results were compared with the gene expression pattern of three "normal" donors. The data generated allowed the identification of many human epididymal genes for which expression is modified after vasectomy. Quantitative (Qt)-PCR and Western blot analysis of six selected genes known to be expressed in specific epididymal segments were performed. The Qt-PCR results confirmed the selected transcripts expression pattern deduced from microarray data. However, Western blot analysis revealed some differences in protein distribution along the epididymis when compared with the encoding transcripts expression pattern. These results contribute to an understanding of the reasons why fertility is not recovered in vasovasostomized men, even though spermogram values suggest surgical success of vasectomy reversal.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Vasectomy on Gene Expression Profiling along the Human Epididymis1

Thimon¹,

Calvo²,

Koukoui³

et al. 2008

Biology of Reproduction

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“…A P34H level of <30% is considered abnormal, because spermatozoa with absent or lower levels of P34H are unable to bind to human zona pellucida (17). Low levels of P34H also have been shown to correlate with outcomes of conventional IVF cycles (21).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Bou e and Sullivan (17), in a study of 16 men with idiopathic primary infertility of R30 months' duration, found that 9 (56%) of 16 men were P34H negative. Sullivan and colleagues (21) subsequently reported that in a study of 104 couples undergoing infertility treatment, 4 (3.8%) of 104 men were P34H negative. Of note, 3 (75%) of the 4 P34H-negative cases failed to fertilize, whereas only 3 (3%) of the 100 P34H-positive cases were associated with absent fertilization.…”

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confidence: 99%

Epididymal P34H protein deficiency in men evaluated for infertility

Moskovtsev

Jarvi

Légaré

et al. 2007

Fertility and Sterility

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“…In the absence of DCXR, spermatozoa are unable to bind to the zona pellucida in vitro, suggesting that this defect may contribute to the etiology of infertility (Boue and Sullivan, 1996). Furthermore, the absence of DCXR predicts standard in vitro fertilization failure, and whereas this protein characterizes fertile donors (Sullivan et al, 2006), DCXR is undetectable in the spermatozoa of 15% of men consulting for infertility (Moskovtsev et al, 2007). Taken together, these observations suggest that DCXR is a marker of sperm epididymal maturation in humans and that abnormalities in epididymal sperm maturation can be involved in the pathophysiology of some cases of male infertility.…”

Section: Effects Of Vasectomy On Specific Proteins and Their Reversibmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gene Expression in the Epididymis of Normal and Vasectomized Men: What Can We Learn About Human Sperm Maturation?

Sullivan

Légaré

Thabet

et al. 2011

Journal of Andrology

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Anatomically, the human epididymis is unusual when compared with the excurrent duct of other eutherian mammals. Furthermore, clinical observations suggest that it may not be as important for sperm maturation as is the case for laboratory animals. In contrast, hierarchical clustering of microarray data of epididymides from normal men revealed 2274 modulated qualifiers between the epididymal segments, 1184, 713, and 269 of them being highly expressed in the caput, corpus, and cauda, respectively. The organization of qualifiers according to their similarities by gene ontology indicated that caput transcripts are dedicated to cell-cell adhesion, whereas the corpus is characterized by genes involved in response to other organisms (ie, defense mechanisms) and the cauda transcriptome is specialized in muscle contraction and establishment of localization. A region-specific gene expression pattern thus characterizes the human epididymis as in animal models. In humans, vasectomies have consequences on the epididymal transcriptome. Cluster analysis revealed that 1363 genes are expressed in both normal and vasectomized epididymides, whereas 911 and 660 of them are specifically expressed in normal and vasectomized epididymides, respectively. Three of the affected genes are particularly interesting because of their involvement in sperm biochemical remodeling during epididymal transit: dicarbonyl/L-xylulose reductase, Niemann-Pick disease, type C2, and cysteine-rich secretory protein 1. In some vasovasostomized men, these modifications in gene expression induced by vasectomy are irreversible, thus affecting the biochemical parameters, and potentially, the function of their ejaculated sperm. This may explain the discrepancies between a surgically successful vasovasostomy and fertility recovery.

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Levels of P34H, a sperm protein of epididymal origin, as a predictor of conventional in vitro fertilization outcome

Cited by 31 publications

References 22 publications

Effects of Vasectomy on Gene Expression Profiling along the Human Epididymis1

Effects of Vasectomy on Gene Expression Profiling along the Human Epididymis1

Epididymal P34H protein deficiency in men evaluated for infertility

Gene Expression in the Epididymis of Normal and Vasectomized Men: What Can We Learn About Human Sperm Maturation?

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