New insights into the t-complex and control of sperm function

✍ Scribed by Lynn R. Fraser; Keith Dudley

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 176 KB
• Volume: 21
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0265-9247
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1521-1878(199904)21:4<304::aid-bies6>3.0.co;2-h

✦ Synopsis

The mouse t-complex, located on chromosome 17, contains genes known to influence male, but not female, fertility. Although some t-complex genes are recessive lethals, t-chromosomes are maintained in the population by transmission ratio distortion. When male mice heterozygous for the t-chromosome mate with wild-type females, most offspring will possess the t-chromosome, indicating a link between t-complex genes and sperm function. Several proteins coded for by t-complex genes have been localised in the sperm flagellum, suggesting roles relating to motility. Another t-complex protein appears able to regulate the adenylyl cyclase/cAMP signal transduction pathway, known to play an important role in capacitation. Defective motility and/or failure to capacitate (''switch on'') would result in poorly fertile or infertile spermatozoa. Given the existence of human homologues for many genes in the t-complex and the prevalence of ''male factor'' infertility, information obtained about the t-complex not only will provide insight into basic biological mechanisms but may be of future clinical relevance as well.