Journal of Andrology
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH
Published-Ahead-of-Print December 26, 2007
Journal of Andrology 2007, DOI:10.2164/jandrol.107.004168

This Article
Right arrow Author Manuscript (PDF)
Right arrow Supplemental Table
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Bayne, R. A. L.
Right arrow Articles by Anderson, R. A.
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Bayne, R. A. L.
Right arrow Articles by Anderson, R. A.

Molecular profiling of the human testis reveals stringent pathway-specific regulation of RNA expression following gonadotropin suppression and progestogen treatment

Rosemary A. L. Bayne *, Thorsten Forster , Stewart T. G. Burgess , Marie Craigon , Melanie J. Walton , David T Baird , Peter Ghazal , and Richard A. Anderson

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: r.bayne{at}hrsu.mrc.ac.uk.

Gonadotropin withdrawal induces changes in gene expression in all three major cell types of the testis. Knowledge of the genes affected, in both the presence and absence of additional progestogen, will give insight into the regulation of human testicular function and aid development of novel contraceptive methods. We have undertaken a whole genome analysis of RNA expression in testicular biopsies from normal men and following 4 weeks gonadotropin suppression induced by Gonadotropin Releasing Hormone (GnRH) antagonist plus testosterone administration sufficient to cause marked suppression of spermatogenesis. Microarray analysis shows that inter-individual variability is markedly low and the response to treatment is focused on a small subset of genes particularly related to pathways in steroidogenesis and cholesterol biosynthesis or metabolism, the Leydig cell gene INSL3, and genes involved in early meiosis or Sertoli-germ cell junctions. These changes in expression were confirmed by quantitative Reverse Transcriptase- Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). No major changes in gene expression were identified in men additionally treated with a progestogen although FLJ35767, an Expressed Sequence Tag (EST) which is expressed in the germ cell compartment, did show a small but significant additional effect of progestogen. Overall, the results of this investigation disclose a remarkably stringent regulation of testicular gene expression, revealing the genes most sensitive to gonadotropin withdrawal and may reflect the most labile pathways in the regulation of testicular function.


Key words: Contraception • Reproductive Genetics • Spermatogenesis • Steroidogenesis • Testis • Microarray Analysis






HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH
Copyright © 2007 by The American Society of Andrology.