Search

Aim: The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of Cynomorium songaricum (CS) on the damage caused by cyclophosphamide (CP) in SD rats. Methods: Rats with CP-induced oligoasthenospermia were treated with different concentration of CS. Testicle weight, epididymal sperm count (ESC), sperm motility, and serum testosterone were analyzed, and expression levels of Thy1, Oct4, PLZF, C-kit, and GDNF were detected in testis tissues. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) was performed to observe the effect of CS on the spermatogenic damage by CP. Results: Compared with the CP group, there were significant differences in testicle weight, ESC, and sperm motility (p0.05). The qPCR results revealed a significant difference in Thy1, Oct4, PLZF and GDNF expression between the CP group and CS group (p 0.05). The damage of CP was cured by CS observed under TEM. Conclusion: CS can increase sperm counts in the epididymis and improve sperm motility and has a therapeutic effect on the spermatogenic damage caused by CP in SD rats.

Aging is a complex biological process leading to impaired functions, with a variety of hallmarks. In the testis of Drosophila, the terminal epithelium region is involved in spermatid release and maturation, while its functional diversity and regulatory mechanism remain poorly understood. In this study, we performed single‐cell RNA‐sequencing analysis (scRNA‐seq) to characterize the transcriptomes of terminal epithelium in Drosophila testes at 2‐, 10 and 40‐Days. Terminal epithelium populations were defined with Metallothionein A (MtnA) and subdivided into six novel sub‐cell clusters (EP0–EP5), and a series of marker genes were identified based on their expressions. The data revealed the functional characteristics of terminal epithelium populations, such as tight junction, focal adhesion, bacterial invasion, oxidative stress, mitochondrial function, proteasome, apoptosis and metabolism. Interestingly, we also found that disrupting genes for several relevant pathways in terminal epithelium led to male fertility disorders. Moreover, we also discovered a series of age‐biased genes and pseudotime trajectory mediated state‐biased genes during terminal epithelium aging. Differentially expressed genes during terminal epithelium aging were mainly participated in the regulation of several common signatures, e.g. mitochondria‐related events, protein synthesis and degradation, and metabolic processes. We further explored the Drosophila divergence and selection in the functional constraints of age‐biased genes during aging, revealing that age‐biased genes in epithelial cells of 2 Days group evolved rapidly and were endowed with greater evolutionary advantages. scRNA‐seq analysis revealed the diversity of testicular terminal epithelium populations, providing a gene target resource for further systematic research of their functions during aging. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This research investigates the metabolic profiles of follicular fluid (FF) samples from patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) undergoing in vitro fertilisation and aims to identify diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers for PCOS through lipidomic analysis., Methods: We performed non-targeted lipid analysis of FF samples from women with PCOS ( n  = 6) and normal controls ( n  = 6) using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Differential lipids between the two groups were screened using multidimensional statistical analysis, followed by fold change analysis and t -tests to identify potential PCOS biomarkers., Results: Multivariate statistical analysis revealed significant differences in FF lipid levels between the PCOS and control groups. Five different lipids were selected as standards, with p  < .05. Phosphatidylcholine (PC), the main differentially expressed lipid, was significantly increased in the FF of the POCS group and was closely related to other lipids., Conclusions: Using ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry, we investigated lipid biomarkers based on FF lipidomics to provide useful information for the discovery of diagnostic markers for PCOS. Our study identified five distinct lipids as potential markers of PCOS, with PC being the primary aberrant lipid found in the FF of patients with PCOS.

The accurate diagnosis of non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) and obstructive azoospermia (OA) is crucial for selecting appropriate clinical treatments. This study aimed to investigate the pivotal role of miRNAs in circulating plasma extracellular vesicles (EVs) in distinguishing between NOA and OA, as well as uncovering the signaling pathways involved in azoospermia pathogenesis. In this study, differential expression of EV miR-513c-5p and miR-202-5p was observed between NOA and OA patients, while the selenocompound metabolism pathway could be affected in azoospermia through Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis. The predictive power of these microRNAs was evaluated using ROC-AUC analysis, demonstrating promising sensitivity, specificity, and area under the curve values. A binomial regression equation incorporating circulating plasma levels of EVs miR-202-5p and miR-513c-5p along with follicle-stimulating hormone was calculated to provide a clinically applicable method for diagnosing NOA and OA. This study presents a potentially non-invasive testing approach for distinguishing between NOA and OA, offering a possibly valuable tool for clinical practice., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Society for the Study of Reproduction. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.)