“Without ACTL7B, advancement is blocked, the cells frequently remain in a roundish shape, usually do not form the elongated, normal sperm shape and die to a big degree,” says first author Gina Esther Merges, a doctoral trainee in Professor Schorles laboratory.Disruption of Protein Networks and Male InfertilityIn this context, the Bonn scientists found that ACTL7B is required for the reorganization of the cytoskeleton of spermatids. Since it is probably a larger protein complex with more interaction partners, we attribute the above-described effect to a loss of temporally and spatially specifically managed and targeted redistribution of these proteins,” Prof. Schorle notes.This describes why the sperm of male mice with a mutated Actl7b gene is not able to develop the particular shape. “Our research study shows that anomalies in the Actl7b gene might be the cause of male infertility,” says Prof. Schorle.Reference: “Actl7b shortage leads to mislocalization of LC8 type dynein light chains and disruption of murine spermatogenesis Icon for The Forest of Biologists” by Gina E. Merges, Lena Arévalo, Andjela Kovacevic, Keerthika Lohanadan, Dirk G. de Rooij, Carla Simon, Melanie Jokwitz, Walter Witke and Hubert Schorle, 27 October 2023, Development.DOI: 10.1242/ dev.201593.
“Without ACTL7B, advancement is obstructed, the cells often remain in a roundish shape, normally do not form the elongated, normal sperm shape and pass away to a big degree,” states initially author Gina Esther Merges, a doctoral student in Professor Schorles laboratory.Disruption of Protein Networks and Male InfertilityIn this context, the Bonn scientists discovered that ACTL7B is needed for the reorganization of the cytoskeleton of spermatids. Given that it is most likely a bigger protein complex with additional interaction partners, we attribute the above-described impact to a loss of temporally and spatially specifically managed and targeted redistribution of these proteins,” Prof. Schorle notes.This discusses why the sperm of male mice with an altered Actl7b gene is not able to establish the particular shape. “Our research study shows that anomalies in the Actl7b gene might be the cause of male infertility,” states Prof. Schorle.Reference: “Actl7b shortage leads to mislocalization of LC8 type dynein light chains and disruption of murine spermatogenesis Icon for The Forest of Biologists” by Gina E. Merges, Lena Arévalo, Andjela Kovacevic, Keerthika Lohanadan, Dirk G. de Rooij, Carla Simon, Melanie Jokwitz, Walter Witke and Hubert Schorle, 27 October 2023, Development.DOI: 10.1242/ dev.201593.
