Search

In the testis, developing germ cells are dependent on supportive physical and paracrine interactions with Sertoli cells. The intimate nature of this relationship is demonstrated by the fact that a toxic insult compromising the stability of Sertoli cells will have deleterious effects on the associated germ cells. 2,5-Hexanedione (HD) and x-radiation (x-ray) are testicular toxicants, each with a unique cellular target. HD exposure disrupts microtubule function in Sertoli cells, and x-ray exposure causes double-strand breaks in the DNA of germ cells. Despite their differing modes of action, exposure to either toxicant has the similar ultimate effect of increased germ cell apoptosis. In this study, adult male F344 rats were exposed to 1% HD in the drinking water for 18 days with or without coexposure to 2 or 5 Gy x-ray 12 h prior to necropsy. Incidence of retained spermatid heads was increased in the HD and coexposure groups. Germ cell apoptosis was significantly increased in the x-ray and coexposure groups. There was a striking stage-dependent attenuation of apoptosis with coexposure compared with x-ray alone. Detailed histopathological analysis revealed a significant suppression of x-ray-induced germ cell apoptosis by HD pretreatment in stages I-VI of the seminiferous cycle, most noticeably at stages II/III. We hypothesize either that subacute HD pretreatment compromises the ability of the Sertoli cells to eliminate x-ray-damaged germ cells or that germ cells are more resistant to x-ray-induced damage, having adapted to a less supportive environment.

Context: Germ cells formed during human fetal life are essential for fertility of the adult, and several studies have described an increasing frequency of male reproductive disorders, which may have a common origin in fetal life and which are hypothesized to be caused by endocrine disruptors. However, factors inducing a genotoxic stress may also be implicated., Objectives: We investigated the effect of gamma-irradiation on the functions of human fetal testis during the first trimester of gestation by using an organ culture system. Then we focused on the role of the p53 pathway in the observed effects., Results: Germ cells were highly sensitive to irradiation even at doses as low as 0.1 and 0.2 Gy. Indeed, for these doses, one third of germ cells died by apoptosis. Other germ cells were blocked in their cycle, but no repair seemed to occur, and longer culture with the highest dose used showed that they were destined to die. Sertoli cells were less affected, although their proliferation and the level of anti-Müllerian hormone were reduced. Irradiation had no effect on testosterone secretion or on the expression of steroidogenic enzymes by Leydig cells. After irradiation, p53 phosphorylated on serine 15 was detected from 1-24 h in all cell types. This activation of p53 was accompanied by an increase in mRNA levels of proapoptotic factors Bax and Puma, whereas that of antiapoptotic Bcl-2 remained unchanged. P21, which is responsible for cell cycle arrest, was also up-regulated 6, 30, and 72 h after irradiation. Finally, when we added pifithrin-alpha, a specific inhibitor of p53 functions, a significant decrease in irradiation-induced apoptosis in both germ and Sertoli cells was observed, indicating the involvement of the p53 pathway in irradiation-induced apoptosis., Conclusions: This study demonstrated here for the first time the great sensitivity of human fetal germ cells to genotoxic stress caused by ionizing radiation.

Sertoli cells, the supportive cells in the seminiferous epithelium, orchestrate spermatogenesis by providing structural and nutritional support to germ cells. In the rat, physiological apoptosis occurs continuously to limit the size of the germ cell population to numbers that can be adequately supported. This form of germ cell death is exaggerated after testicular insults such as toxicant treatment, radiation, and heat exposure. The Fas system has been proposed as a key regulator of the activation of germ cell apoptosis. According to this model, Fas ligand (FasL) and Fas, expressed by Sertoli cells and germ cells, respectively, respond to environmental conditions and initiate germ cell death. To assess the role of the Fas system in various testicular injury models, a semiquantitative RT-PCR technique was used to evaluate the expression kinetics of both FasL and Fas after induction of massive germ cell death. Radiation exposure, which targets actively dividing germ cells, produced an up-regulation of Fas gene expression, but not FasL gene expression. However, administration of mono-(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate and 2,5-hexanedione, two widely studied Sertoli cell toxicants, resulted in up-regulated expression of both FasL and Fas. These data support the following hypotheses: 1) up-regulation of Fas is a common and critical step for initiating germ cell death in vivo; and 2) if Sertoli cells are injured, Sertoli cells up-regulate FasL to eliminate Fas-positive germ cells, which cannot be supported adequately.

The effect of the p53 gene on the survival of mouse testicular cells was evaluated by analysis of degenerating and terminal transferase-mediated end labeling (TUNEL)-positive cells and the subsequent production of further differentiated progeny. In p53 null mice, in contrast to wild-type mice, radiation induced negligible levels of degenerating or TUNEL-positive differentiating spermatogonia within 24 h. This was correlated with higher production of differentiated progeny of the differentiating spermatogonia in p53 null mice. Contrary to the differentiating spermatogonia, the stem spermatogonia of p53 null mice produced fewer differentiated progeny after irradiation than did the stem cells of wild-type mice. We conclude that, because the degeneration and TUNEL positivity of the differentiating spermatogonia in mice of different genotypes were correlated with each other and were dependent on p53, this process is indeed apoptosis. In the differentiating spermatogonia, p53-dependent apoptosis accounted for the bulk of the loss of their progeny after irradiation. Furthermore, whereas the differentiating spermatogonia died by apoptosis that was dependent on p53, the stem spermatogonia, which are more radioresistant, did not.