| First Author | Chung SS | Year | 2009 |
| Journal | Development | Volume | 136 |
| Issue | 12 | Pages | 2091-100 |
| PubMed ID | 19465599 | Mgi Jnum | J:149525 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3848639 | Doi | 10.1242/dev.020040 |
| Citation | Chung SS, et al. (2009) Expression of retinoic acid receptor alpha in the germline is essential for proper cellular association and spermiogenesis during spermatogenesis. Development 136(12):2091-100 |
| abstractText | Signaling through vitamin A metabolites is indispensable for spermatogenesis, and disruption of retinoic acid receptor alpha (RARalpha) function resulted in male sterility and aberrant spermatogenesis, which resembled vitamin A deficiency. Here we investigated the lineage- and cell-specific role of RARalpha-mediated signaling during spermatogenesis using germ-cell transplantation and genetically manipulated mouse models. We demonstrated that RARalpha-deficient germ-cell stem cells were able to repopulate germ-cell-depleted wild-type testes and initiate spermatogenesis; however, improper cellular associations and abnormal sperm formation were observed. We further generated RARalpha-deficient mice that expressed RARalpha-EGFP fusion protein uniquely in haploid germ cells. Strikingly, spermatid orientation, alignment and release, as well as sperm morphology, were normal and there was a partial rescue of sterility. These data provide the first direct evidence for a distinct requirement of RARalpha-mediated retinoid signaling specifically in germ cells. |
