ABSTRACT
Objective@#To investigate the expression of phosphoglycerate mutase 1 (PGAM1) in the mouse testis after exposure to single heat stress (SHS).@*METHODS@#We randomly assigned 32 C57 male mice to an SHS (n = 16) and a control group (n = 16), the former bathed in water at 43 ℃ and the latter at 25 ℃ for 15 minutes. At 1 and 7 days after exposure, we harvested the testicular tissue for observation of the morphological changes of testicular cells by HE staining and determination of the location and expression of the PGAM1 protein by immunohistochemistry and Western blot.@*RESULTS@#The testis volume of the mice were reduced significantly, the spermatogenic tubules were disorganized, and the cells were reduced in number after heat stress and basically disappeared after 7 days. Immunohistochemistry showed extensive expression of the PGAM1 protein in the testicular spermatogenic tubules of the SHS-exposed mice, significantly higher than in the control group at 1 day after exposure, which was down-regulated in the testis tissue at 7 days, but still markedly higher than that in the control. Western blot exhibited significantly up-regulated expression of the PGAM1 protein after heat stress compared with that in the control group.@*CONCLUSIONS@#The expression of the PGAM1 protein undergoes dynamic changes in the mouse testis after exposed to single heat stress, which is related to heat stress-induced proliferation and division of testicular spermatogenic cells.
Subject(s)
Animals , Male , Mice , Heat-Shock Response , Phosphoglycerate Mutase , TestisABSTRACT
Objective@#To investigate the role of pH2AX in the reversibility of mouse testicular reproductive function impaired by single heat stress.@*METHODS@#Twenty-four C57 male mice were randomly divided into heat stress and control groups and immersed in water at 43℃ and 25℃, respectively, for 15 minutes. At 1, 7, and 14 days of heat exposure, all the mice were sacrificed and their testis tissues collected for determining the apoptosis of the germ cells by TUNEL and measuring the expression level of the pH2AX protein by immunohistochemistry and Western blot.@*RESULTS@#The highest percentage of apoptotic cells were found in the seminiferous tubules of the mice in the heat stress group on the 1st day of the exposure and almost no apoptosis was observed at 7 and 14 days. The pH2AX protein was expressed in the nuclei of the basement membrane of adjacent seminiferous tubules. Compared with the control group, the expression of pH2AX was significantly increased on the 1st day of exposure (0.47 ± 0.02 vs 1.61 ± 0.04, P <0.01), then decreased at 7 days (0.85 ± 0.03) in comparison with that on the 1st day (P <0.01), and again elevated at 14 days (1.72 ± 0.02) as compared with either those at 1 and 7 days (P <0.01) or that of the control (P <0.01).@*CONCLUSIONS@#Heat stress causes dynamic changes of the pH2AX expression in the testis of the mouse, which are associated with heat stress-induced proliferation and division of the testicular spermatogenic cells.