| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||
Regular Article, PCC |
a Institute of Anatomy, University of Hamburg, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
b Institute for Hormone and Fertility Research, University of Hamburg, 22529 Hamburg, Germany
ABSTRACT
Previous studies have demonstrated that cGMP is produced by nitric oxide-mediated activation of soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC) in seminiferous tubules of the human testis. It is not known, however, whether carbon monoxide (CO), another activator of sGC, is also involved in testicular function. To address this issue, testicular probes from 65- to 75-yr-old men have been examined. The CO-generating enzyme, heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1), could be localized by immunohistochemical and immunoblot analyses to Sertoli cells. In these cells, HO-1 is detectable in adluminal cell compartments, whereas sGC immunoreactivity is distributed exclusively in basal compartments. Treatments of isolated tubules with either sodium arsenite, known to induce HO-1, or hematin, an HO substrate, resulted in 4.4- and 1.8-fold, respectively, increases in cGMP levels. ODQ, a specific sGC inhibitor, inhibited completely the sodium arsenite-stimulated cGMP production. Moreover, the HO inhibitor zinc protoporphyrin-IX and the CO scavenger hemoglobin both significantly reduced (77% or 46% of control, respectively) tubular cGMP generation. These findings, demonstrating for the first time a link between HO-1 activity in Sertoli cells and sGC-dependent cGMP production in seminiferous tubules, suggest a functional role of CO in the human testis.
First decision: 16 August 1999.
1 The present study was supported by grants from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Mi 637/1-1).
2 Correspondence: Ralf Middendorff, Institute of Anatomy, University of Hamburg, Martinistr. 52, 20246 Hamburg, Germany. FAX: 49 40 42803 4966; middendo{at}uke.uni-hamburg.de
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  M. Mewe, C. K. Bauer, D. Muller, and R. Middendorff Regulation of Spontaneous Contractile Activity in the Bovine Epididymal Duct by Cyclic Guanosine 5'-Monophosphate-Dependent Pathways Endocrinology, April 1, 2006; 147(4): 2051 - 2062. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 L. Wu and R. Wang Carbon Monoxide: Endogenous Production, Physiological Functions, and Pharmacological Applications Pharmacol. Rev., December 1, 2005; 57(4): 585 - 630. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 K. Shiraishi and K. Naito Increased expression of Leydig cell haem oxygenase-1 preserves spermatogenesis in varicocele Hum. Reprod., September 1, 2005; 20(9): 2608 - 2613. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 F. Shi, R. L. Stewart Jr, E. Perez, J. Y.-H. Chen, and P. S. LaPolt Cell-Specific Expression and Regulation of Soluble Guanylyl Cyclase {alpha}1 and {beta}1 Subunits in the Rat Ovary Biol Reprod, June 1, 2004; 70(6): 1552 - 1561. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
N. P. Y. Lee and C. Yan Cheng Regulation of Sertoli Cell Tight Junction Dynamics in the Rat Testis via the Nitric Oxide Synthase/Soluble Guanylate Cyclase/3',5'-Cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate/Protein Kinase G Signaling Pathway: an in Vitro Study Endocrinology, July 1, 2003; 144(7): 3114 - 3129. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 R. Middendorff, D. Muller, M. Mewe, A. K. Mukhopadhyay, A. F. Holstein, and M. S. Davidoff The Tunica Albuginea of the Human Testis Is Characterized by Complex Contraction and Relaxation Activities Regulated by Cyclic GMP J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., July 1, 2002; 87(7): 3486 - 3499. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
