Journal
INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MOLECULAR SCIENCES
Volume 22, Issue 15, Pages -Publisher
MDPI
DOI: 10.3390/ijms22158119
Keywords
histones; gamete biology; spermiogenesis; microtubular manchette; spermatozoa; perinuclear theca; postacrosomal sheath; perforatorium; fertilization; ICSI; mass spectrometry
Funding
- Canadian Institute of Health Research [84440]
- Natural Science and Engineering Research Council of Canada [RGPIN/05305]
- Agriculture and Food Research Initiative from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture [2015-67015-23231]
- Food for the 21st Century Program of the University of Missouri
Ask authors/readers for more resources
This study discovered the presence of core histones in the perinuclear theca (PT) of eutherian sperm, which are newly synthesized during spermiogenesis and play a role in chromatin remodeling of the male pronucleus post-fertilization. These histones are localized in specific sub-compartments of the PT and contribute to early embryonic development, highlighting their functional significance in reproductive processes.
The perinuclear theca (PT) of the eutherian sperm head is a cytoskeletal-like structure that houses proteins involved in important cellular processes during spermiogenesis and fertilization. Building upon our novel discovery of non-nuclear histones in the bovine PT, we sought to investigate whether this PT localization was a conserved feature of eutherian sperm. Employing cell fractionation, immunodetection, mass spectrometry, qPCR, and intracytoplasmic sperm injections (ICSI), we examined the localization, developmental origin, and functional potential of histones from the murid PT. Immunodetection localized histones to the post-acrosomal sheath (PAS) and the perforatorium (PERF) of the PT but showed an absence in the sperm nucleus. MS/MS analysis of selectively extracted PT histones indicated that predominately core histones (i.e., H3, H3.3, H2B, H2A, H2AX, and H4) populate the murid PT. These core histones appear to be de novo-synthesized in round spermatids and assembled via the manchette during spermatid elongation. Mouse ICSI results suggest that early embryonic development is delayed in the absence of PT-derived core histones. Here, we provide evidence that core histones are de novo-synthesized prior to PT assembly and deposited in PT sub-compartments for subsequent involvement in chromatin remodeling of the male pronucleus post-fertilization.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available