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Testicular Xenografting

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Male Germline Stem Cells: Developmental and Regenerative Potential

Part of the book series: Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine ((STEMCELL))

Abstract

Mammalian spermatogenesis is sustained by spermatogonial stem cells. Although our knowledge of spermatogenesis and the biology of spermatogonial stem cells has increased in the last decades, many aspects of spermatogonial function still remain unclear, especially in the primate testis. The lack of suitable systems to study testis development and spermatogenesis ex vivo has limited our ability to elucidate these processes. Ectopic grafting of testis tissue from immature animals into immunodeficient mice provides a system to recapitulate spermatogenesis and to harvest fertilization-competent sperm from many mammalian species, including primates. More recently, it was shown that isolated testis cells from immature males are able to organize and rearrange into seminiferous cords that subsequently undergo complete development, including production of viable sperm. While few studies have been performed with xenografting human testis, xenografting of non-human primate testis tissue has provided a novel approach to study prepubertal maturation of the testis, optimize cryopreservation of testis tissue, evaluate gonadotoxic effects, and produce fertilization competent primate sperm. These novel strategies to generate sperm from spermatogonial stem cells or immature testicular tissue could provide an option for fertility preservation by cryopreservation of testicular tissue fragments from young patients whose future fertility is at risk due to oncological treatment or other gonadotoxic exposures. Here we review comparative aspects of testis tissue xenografting and clinical as well as experimental applications to explore spermatogenesis and novel strategies for preservation of male fertility in primates.

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Acknowledgments

Work performed in ID’s laboratory was supported by National Research Initiative Competitive Grant no. 2007-35203-18213 from the USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service, and by grant no. 2 R01 RR17359-06 from the National Institutes of Health/ National Center for Research Resources. Work performed in the laboratory of SS was funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and the Lance Armstrong Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center of Reproductive Medicine and Andrology, University Münster, Domagkstraße 11, 48149, Münster, Germany

    Stefan Schlatt

  2. Department of Comparative Biology and Experimental Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, HRIC 2A C58, 3300 Hospital Drive, Calgary, AB, Canada, T2N 4N1

    Ina Dobrinski

Authors
  1. Stefan Schlatt
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  2. Jose R. Rodriguez-Sosa
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  3. Ina Dobrinski
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Correspondence to Stefan Schlatt or Ina Dobrinski .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Craft Avenue 204, Pittsburgh, 15213, Pennsylvania, USA

    Kyle E. Orwig

  2. Magee-Womens Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh, Craft Avenue 204, Pittsburgh, 15213, Pennsylvania, USA

    Brian P. Hermann

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Schlatt, S., Rodriguez-Sosa, J.R., Dobrinski, I. (2011). Testicular Xenografting. In: Orwig, K., Hermann, B. (eds) Male Germline Stem Cells: Developmental and Regenerative Potential. Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-61737-973-4_10

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