Holger Bertelsmann, Harald Sieme, Dietrich Behne, Antonios Kyriakopoulos
Hahn-Meitner Institut, Department of Molecular Trace Element Research in the Life Science, SF 6, Glienickerstr. 100, 14109 Berlin, Germany. bertelsmann@hmi.de
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 2007 JanIn the sperm nuclei, of mammalian species selenium has been found only in the form of sperm nuclei glutathione peroxidase (snGPx) where it is most likely bound to the chromatin of spermatozoa. Over 80% of selenium in sperm is bound to the selenoprotein phospholipid hydroperoxide glutathione peroxidase (PHGPx) in the midpiece of rat sperm. Zinc in sperm is mainly contained in the outer dense fiber (ODF) proteins of the flagella of mammalian spermatozoa. In the sperm nuclei, zinc is predominately located in the chromatin to the protamine proteins. In order to investigate if the insertion of zinc and selenium in sperm chromatin is regulated, the element concentrations were determined in equine spermatozoa and purified sperm nuclei. We found a significant positive correlation between the selenium concentration in equine spermatozoa and sperm nuclei. The same finding was obtained for the zinc concentration in spermatozoa and sperm nuclei. The results assume that the distribution of selenium and zinc in spermatozoa is regulated by cell signaling pathways and in this way determining the selenium and zinc amount in the chromatin of spermatozoa.
Holger Bertelsmann, Harald Sieme, Dietrich Behne, Antonios Kyriakopoulos. Is the distribution of selenium and zinc in the sublocations of spermatozoa regulated? Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences. 2007 Jan;1095:204-8
PMID: 17404033
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