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Expression of the G-protein α-subunit gustducin in mammalian spermatozoa

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Abstract

Although chemotaxis has been proposed to guide sperm to egg throughout the animal kingdom, sperm attractants released from mammalian eggs have not been identified. Since the G protein subunit α-gustducin is accepted as a marker of chemosensitive cells, attempts were made to explore whether α-gustducin is also expressed in spermatozoa of mammals. Immunohistochemical approaches using an anti-α-gustducin-specific antibody revealed the most intense immunoreactivity in differentiating spermatids. Further evidence for the α-gustducin expression was obtained analyzing testicular and sperm-derived tissue preparations in western blot analyses. To elucidate whether α-gustducin is retained in mature spermatozoa, epididymal mouse and rat sperm were subjected to immunocytochemistry as well as immunogold electron microscopy. A specific staining was obtained within the circumference of the midpiece-localized mitochondria, on the axoneme and the outer dense fibers surrounding the microtubules of this region, whereas no labeling was detectable in the end piece regions. The analysis of ejaculated bovine and human sperm revealed a comparable segmental distribution pattern for α-gustducin. Although a possible function for α-gustducin has yet to be determined, the axonemal-associated localization within the midpiece and principal piece of different mammalian spermatozoa raises the possibility that this G protein α-subunit may process intracellular signals controlling sperm motility.

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Abbreviations

cAMP:

3′,5′-Cyclic adenosine monophosphate

cGMP:

Cyclic guanosine 5′-monophosphate

FITC:

Fluorescein isothiocyanate

PDE:

Phosphodiesterase

PLC:

Phospholipase C

SCC:

Solitary chemosensory cells

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Acknowledgments

We thank Marga Losekamp for providing expert technical assistance, Tim Plant, Andreas Breit and Thomas Büch for critical reading of the manuscript, and Heinz Breer for helpful suggestions and support for some molecular and histological experiments. This work was supported in part by the P.E. Kempkes Stifung. The experiments comply with Principles of Animal Care, publication no. 85–23, revised 1985, of the National Institutes of Health and with the current laws of Germany.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Philipps-University Marburg, Karl-von-Frisch-Strasse 1, 35032, Marburg, Germany

    Johanna Fehr, Dorke Meyer, Heike Claudia Borth, Frauke Ackermann, Thomas Gudermann & Ingrid Boekhoff

  2. Institute of Physiology, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany

    Patricia Widmayer

  3. Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Philipps-University Marburg, Marburg, Germany

    Beate Wilhelm

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  1. Johanna Fehr
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  2. Dorke Meyer
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  3. Patricia Widmayer
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Correspondence to Ingrid Boekhoff.

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Johanna Fehr and Dorke Meyer contributed equally to this work.

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Fehr, J., Meyer, D., Widmayer, P. et al. Expression of the G-protein α-subunit gustducin in mammalian spermatozoa. J Comp Physiol A 193, 21–34 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0168-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0168-8

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