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Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis

BACKGROUND: Spermatogenesis in mammals is organized in a manner that maximizes sperm production. The central aspect of this organization is the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium that is characterized by an asynchronous repeating series of germ cell associations. These cell associations are the re...

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Autores principales: Gewiss, Rachel, Topping, Traci, Griswold, Michael D.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2019
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7496180/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31670467
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/andr.12722
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author Gewiss, Rachel
Topping, Traci
Griswold, Michael D.
author_facet Gewiss, Rachel
Topping, Traci
Griswold, Michael D.
author_sort Gewiss, Rachel
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: Spermatogenesis in mammals is organized in a manner that maximizes sperm production. The central aspect of this organization is the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium that is characterized by an asynchronous repeating series of germ cell associations. These cell associations are the result of a fixed point of entry into the cycle at regular short time intervals and the longer time required for cells to fully differentiate and exit the cycle. OBJECTIVE: This review will examine the current information on the action and metabolism of retinoic acid in the testis, the interaction of retinoic acid (RA) with the cycle and the spermatogenic wave, and the mechanisms that can lead to synchronous spermatogenesis. Finally, the unique applications of synchronous spermatogenesis to the study of the cycle and the mass isolation of specific germ cell populations are described. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Retinoic acid metabolism and spermatogonial differentiation have been examined by gene deletions, immunocytochemistry, chemical inhibitors, and mass spectrometry. RESULTS, DISCUSSION, AND CONCLUSION: Both the Sertoli cells and the germ cells have the capacity to synthesize retinoic acid from retinol and in the mouse the entry into the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium, and the subsequent conversion of undifferentiated spermatogonia into differentiating spermatogonia is governed by a peak of RA synthesis occurring at stages VIII‐IX of the cycle. Normal asynchronous spermatogenesis can be modified by altering RA levels, and as a result the entire testis will consist of a few closely related stages of the cycle.
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spelling pubmed-74961802020-09-25 Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis Gewiss, Rachel Topping, Traci Griswold, Michael D. Andrology Review Articles BACKGROUND: Spermatogenesis in mammals is organized in a manner that maximizes sperm production. The central aspect of this organization is the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium that is characterized by an asynchronous repeating series of germ cell associations. These cell associations are the result of a fixed point of entry into the cycle at regular short time intervals and the longer time required for cells to fully differentiate and exit the cycle. OBJECTIVE: This review will examine the current information on the action and metabolism of retinoic acid in the testis, the interaction of retinoic acid (RA) with the cycle and the spermatogenic wave, and the mechanisms that can lead to synchronous spermatogenesis. Finally, the unique applications of synchronous spermatogenesis to the study of the cycle and the mass isolation of specific germ cell populations are described. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Retinoic acid metabolism and spermatogonial differentiation have been examined by gene deletions, immunocytochemistry, chemical inhibitors, and mass spectrometry. RESULTS, DISCUSSION, AND CONCLUSION: Both the Sertoli cells and the germ cells have the capacity to synthesize retinoic acid from retinol and in the mouse the entry into the cycle of the seminiferous epithelium, and the subsequent conversion of undifferentiated spermatogonia into differentiating spermatogonia is governed by a peak of RA synthesis occurring at stages VIII‐IX of the cycle. Normal asynchronous spermatogenesis can be modified by altering RA levels, and as a result the entire testis will consist of a few closely related stages of the cycle. John Wiley and Sons Inc. 2019-11-20 2020-07 /pmc/articles/PMC7496180/ /pubmed/31670467 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/andr.12722 Text en © 2019 The Authors. Andrology published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Society of Andrology and European Academy of Andrology This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
spellingShingle Review Articles
Gewiss, Rachel
Topping, Traci
Griswold, Michael D.
Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
title Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
title_full Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
title_fullStr Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
title_full_unstemmed Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
title_short Cycles, waves, and pulses: Retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
title_sort cycles, waves, and pulses: retinoic acid and the organization of spermatogenesis
topic Review Articles
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7496180/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31670467
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/andr.12722
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