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Stage-specific changes in GDNF expression by rat Sertoli cells: a possible regulator of the replication and differentiation of stem spermatogonia.
- Source :
-
Biology of reproduction [Biol Reprod] 2011 Oct; Vol. 85 (4), pp. 763-9. Date of Electronic Publication: 2011 Jun 08. - Publication Year :
- 2011
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Abstract
- In the adult testis, the precise control of the self-renewing replication and differentiation of stem spermatogonia is fundamental to male fertility. Previous studies have shown that the replication of A single (A(s)) spermatogonia, a population that includes the stem cells, is maximal at stage I of the cycle of the rat seminiferous epithelium and minimal at stage VII, while the ratio of A-paired spermatogonia to A(s) spermatogonia increases from stages I to VII. It has been hypothesized that these changes in A(s) spermatogonia replication and differentiation result from changes in the expression of glial cell-line derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) by Sertoli cells. To directly test this hypothesis, we used immunocytochemistry and confocal microscopy to demonstrate that within intact seminiferous tubules, GDNF is detectable only in Sertoli cells and that its amount and its location within these cells changes with progression of the stages of the cycle. The identification of Sertoli cells as the primary source of GDNF was confirmed by RT-PCR analysis of RNA isolated from purified populations of Sertoli cells, pachytene spermatocytes, and round spermatids. Stage-specific changes in GDNF expression were confirmed by quantifying GDNF mRNA in seminiferous tubules at defined stages of the cycle. Expression of this transcript was maximal at stage I, fell 14-fold by stage VIIc,d, and then increased 12-fold by stages XIII-XIV. This pattern of expression was the opposite of the control, cathepsin L mRNA. Taken together, these data support the hypothesis that cyclical changes in GDNF expression by Sertoli cells are responsible for the stage-specific replication and differentiation of stem spermatogonia, the foundational cells of spermatogenesis.
- Subjects :
- Adult Stem Cells cytology
Animals
Cell Separation
Cells, Cultured
Immunohistochemistry
Male
Microscopy, Confocal
Protein Transport
RNA, Messenger metabolism
Rats
Rats, Sprague-Dawley
Seminiferous Epithelium cytology
Seminiferous Epithelium metabolism
Spermatids cytology
Spermatids metabolism
Spermatocytes cytology
Spermatocytes metabolism
Spermatogonia cytology
Adult Stem Cells metabolism
Gene Expression Regulation
Glial Cell Line-Derived Neurotrophic Factor metabolism
Sertoli Cells metabolism
Spermatogenesis
Spermatogonia metabolism
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1529-7268
- Volume :
- 85
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Biology of reproduction
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 21653894
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1095/biolreprod.110.087676