Proteomic analysis reveals Topoisomerase 2A is associated with defective sperm head morphology.

Proteomic analysis reveals Topoisomerase 2A is associated with defective sperm head morphology. Mol Cell Proteomics. 2019 Dec 17;: Authors: Netherton JK, Ogle RA, Hetherington L, Silva Balbin Villaverde AI, Hondermarck H, Baker MA Abstract Male infertility is widespread and estimated to affect 1 in 20 men. Whilst in some cases the aetiology of the condition is well understood, for at least 50% of men, the underlying cause is yet to be classified. Male infertility, or sub-fertility, is often diagnosed by looking at total sperm produced, motility of the cells and overall morphology. Whilst counting spermatozoa and their associated motility is routine, morphology assessment is highly subjective, mainly due to the procedure being based on microscopic examination. A failure to diagnose male-infertility or sub-fertility has led to a situation where assisted conception is often used unnecessarily.  As such, biomarkers of male infertility are needed to help establish a more consistent diagnosis. In the present study, we compared nuclear extracts from both high- and low-quality spermatozoa by LC-MS/MS based proteomic analysis. Our data shows that nuclear retention of specific proteins is a common facet amongst low-quality sperm cells. In particular, we demonstrate that the presence of Topoisomerase 2A in the sperm head is highly correlated to poor head morphology. Topoisomerase 2A is therefore a potential new biomarker for confirming male in...
Source: Molecular and Cellular Proteomics : MCP - Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Tags: Mol Cell Proteomics Source Type: research