Epididymal acquired sperm microRNAs modify post-fertilization embryonic gene expression
Ontology highlight
ABSTRACT:
PROVIDER: PRJNA1025273 | ENA |
REPOSITORIES: ENA
Similar Datasets
Project description:Sperm small RNAs have emerged as important non-genetic contributors to embryogenesis and offspring health. A subset of sperm small RNAs are thought to be acquired during epididymal transit. However, the transfer of RNAs from the somatic epididymis to the sperm has been questioned, and the identity of the specific small RNAs transferred remains unclear. Here, we employ Cre/Lox genetics to generate germline- and epididymal-specific Dgcr8 conditional knockout mice to investigate the dynamics of sperm microRNAs and their function in the early embryo. Interestingly, sperm from germline specific Dgcr8 knockout males restored the levels of 58 of the 98 (59%) miRNAs that were lost in testicular sperm during epididymal transit. Conversely, sperm from epididymal Dgcr8 knockouts displayed a 5-fold reduction in 25 miRNAs. This substantial loss of epididymal miRNAs in sperm was accompanied by transcriptomic changes in the embryo which was rescued by microinjection of epididymal miRNAs. These findings ultimately demonstrate the acquisition of miRNAs by sperm during epididymal transit and their regulation of post-fertilization embryonic gene expression.
2024-08-31 | GSE244885 | GEO
Project description:Prototypical micro RNAs (miRNAs) are 21~25-base-pair RNAs that regulate differentiation, carcinogenesis and pluripotency by eliminating mRNAs or blocking their translation, processes collectively termed RNA interference (RNAi). RNAi mediated by miRNAs regulates early development in zebrafish, and mouse embryos lacking the miRNA precursor processor, Dicer, are inviable. However, the role of miRNAs during mammalian fertilization is unknown. We here show using microarrays that miRNAs are present in mouse sperm structures that enter the oocyte at fertilization. Sperm contained a broad profile of miRNAs and a subset of potential mRNA targets were expressed in fertilizable, metaphase II (mII) oocytes. Oocytes contained transcripts for the RNAinduced silencing complex (RISC) catalytic subunit, EIF2C3 (formerly AGO3). However, levels of sperm-borne miRNA (measured by quantitative PCR) were apparently low relative to those of unfertilized, mII oocytes, and fertilization did not alter the part of the mII oocyte miRNA landscape that included the most abundant sperm-borne miRNAs. Coinjection of mII oocytes with sperm heads plus anti-miRNAs - to suppress miRNA function - did not perturb pronuclear activation or preimplantation development. Contrastingly, we provide evidence that nuclear transfer by microinjection alters the miRNA profile of enucleated oocytes. These data argue that sperm-borne prototypical miRNAs play a limited role, if any, in mammalian fertilization or early preimplantation development. Keywords: miRNA profiling Seven samples were analyzed for the study.
2010-06-10 | E-GEOD-4011 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Parental dietary conditions can influence the metabolic traits of offspring. In mice, paternal consumption of low protein diet alters cholesterol and lipid metabolism of progeny. Here, we examine RNA species expressed in male reproductive tissues of mice. Protein restriction leads to altered levels of multiple small RNAs in mature sperm, as well as throughout the male reproductive tract, with decreased levels of let-7 family members and increased levels of 5â fragments of tRNA-Gly isoacceptors. Intriguingly, tRNA fragments are scarce in the testis, but their levels increase in sperm during post-testicular maturation in the epididymis. We find that epididymosomes â extracellular vesicles which fuse with sperm during epididymal transit â exhibit RNA payloads closely matching those of mature sperm, and can deliver tRNA fragments to immature sperm in vitro both in mouse and in bull. Finally, we show that tRNA-Gly-GCC fragments play a role in repressing genes associated with the endogenous retroelement MERVL, both in ES cells and in preimplantation embryos. Our results shed light on small RNA biogenesis during post-testicular sperm maturation, and link tRNA fragments to regulation of endogenous retroelements active in the early embryo. Zygotes were generated by ICSI from oocytes/females fed a Control diet and sperm/males fed either a Control or Low Protein diet. The sperm was isolated from either the Rete testis or the Cauda epididymis and injected either as a whole sperm or just the sperm head. Following fertilization by ICSI the zygotes developed for 28 hours (2C stage) and were harvested for single-embryo RNA-Seq.
2015-12-31 | E-GEOD-75769 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:The proteome of two sperm sources, epididymal and ejaculated sperm, was compared and associated with sperm freezing capacity using samples collected from three wild small ruminants species. Protein identification was performed using two databases separately (Ovis aries and Capra hircus NCBI) and results were later combined.
2021-05-04 | PXD017462 | Pride
Project description:Prototypical micro RNAs (miRNAs) are 21~25-base-pair RNAs that regulate differentiation, carcinogenesis and pluripotency by eliminating mRNAs or blocking their translation, processes collectively termed RNA interference (RNAi). RNAi mediated by miRNAs regulates early development in zebrafish, and mouse embryos lacking the miRNA precursor processor, Dicer, are inviable. However, the role of miRNAs during mammalian fertilization is unknown. We here show using microarrays that miRNAs are present in mouse sperm structures that enter the oocyte at fertilization. Sperm contained a broad profile of miRNAs and a subset of potential mRNA targets were expressed in fertilizable, metaphase II (mII) oocytes. Oocytes contained transcripts for the RNAinduced silencing complex (RISC) catalytic subunit, EIF2C3 (formerly AGO3). However, levels of sperm-borne miRNA (measured by quantitative PCR) were apparently low relative to those of unfertilized, mII oocytes, and fertilization did not alter the part of the mII oocyte miRNA landscape that included the most abundant sperm-borne miRNAs. Coinjection of mII oocytes with sperm heads plus anti-miRNAs - to suppress miRNA function - did not perturb pronuclear activation or preimplantation development. Contrastingly, we provide evidence that nuclear transfer by microinjection alters the miRNA profile of enucleated oocytes. These data argue that sperm-borne prototypical miRNAs play a limited role, if any, in mammalian fertilization or early preimplantation development. Keywords: miRNA profiling
2006-09-06 | GSE4011 | GEO
Project description:In recent years considerable effort has been devoted to understanding the epigenetic control of sperm development leading to an increased appreciation of the importance of RNA interference pathways, and in particular microRNAs (miRNAs), as key regulators of spermatogenesis and epididymal maturation. It has also been shown that sperm are endowed with an impressive array of miRNA that have been implicated in various aspects of fertilization and embryo development. However, to date there have been no reports on whether the sperm miRNA signature is static or whether it is influenced by their prolonged maturation within the male reproductive tract. To investigate this phenomenon we employed next generation sequencing to systematically profile the miRNA signature of maturing mouse spermatozoa. In so doing we have provided the first evidence for the dynamic post-testicular modification of the sperm miRNA profile under normal physiological conditions. Such modifications include the apparent loss and acquisition of an impressive cohort of some 113 and 115 miRNAs, respectively between the proximal and distal epididymal segments. Interestingly, the majority of these changes occur late in maturation and include the uptake of novel miRNA species in addition to a significant increase in many miRNAs natively expressed in immature sperm. Since sperm are not capable of de novo transcription these findings identify the epididymis as an important site in establishing the sperm epigenome with the potential to condition the peri-conceptual environment of the female reproductive tract, contribute to the inheritance of acquired characteristics, and/or alter the developmental trajectory of the resulting offspring. Examination of the microRNA expression profile in sperm thoughout the mouse epididymis and mouse using next generation sequencing in duplicate.
2015-08-05 | E-GEOD-70198 | biostudies-arrayexpress
Project description:Paternal exposure to environmental stressors elicits distinct changes to the sperm sncRNA profile; modifications that have significant post-fertilization consequences. Despite this knowledge, there remains limited mechanistic understanding of how paternal exposures modify the sperm sncRNA landscape. Here, we report the acute sensitivity of the sperm sncRNA profile to the reproductive toxicant, acrylamide. Further, we traced the differential accumulation of acrylamide-responsive sncRNAs to coincide with sperm transit of the proximal (caput) segment of the epididymis, wherein acrylamide exposure altered the abundance of several transcription factors implicated in the expression of acrylamide-sensitive sncRNAs. We also identified extracellular vesicles secreted from the caput epithelium in relaying altered sncRNA profiles to maturing spermatozoa, and dysregulated gene expression during early embryonic development following fertilisation by acrylamide-exposed spermatozoa. These data provide mechanistic links to account for how environmental insults can alter the sperm epigenome and compromise the transcriptomic profile of early embryos.
2021-10-04 | GSE162527 | GEO
Project description:In recent years considerable effort has been devoted to understanding the epigenetic control of sperm development leading to an increased appreciation of the importance of RNA interference pathways, and in particular microRNAs (miRNAs), as key regulators of spermatogenesis and epididymal maturation. It has also been shown that sperm are endowed with an impressive array of miRNA that have been implicated in various aspects of fertilization and embryo development. However, to date there have been no reports on whether the sperm miRNA signature is static or whether it is influenced by their prolonged maturation within the male reproductive tract. To investigate this phenomenon we employed next generation sequencing to systematically profile the miRNA signature of maturing mouse spermatozoa. In so doing we have provided the first evidence for the dynamic post-testicular modification of the sperm miRNA profile under normal physiological conditions. Such modifications include the apparent loss and acquisition of an impressive cohort of some 113 and 115 miRNAs, respectively between the proximal and distal epididymal segments. Interestingly, the majority of these changes occur late in maturation and include the uptake of novel miRNA species in addition to a significant increase in many miRNAs natively expressed in immature sperm. Since sperm are not capable of de novo transcription these findings identify the epididymis as an important site in establishing the sperm epigenome with the potential to condition the peri-conceptual environment of the female reproductive tract, contribute to the inheritance of acquired characteristics, and/or alter the developmental trajectory of the resulting offspring.
2015-08-05 | GSE70198 | GEO
Project description:Sperm cells of seed plants have lost their motility and are transported by the vegetative pollen tube cell for fertilization. The extent to which sperm cells regulate their own transportation is a long-standing debate. By using the novel Arabidopsis double mutant drop1 drop2, we demonstrate here that sperm cells are only passive cargo and that the vegetative tube cell as a vehicle controls the entire journey.
2017-05-01 | GSE98145 | GEO
Project description:Following their production in the testis, spermatozoa enter the epididymis to gain their motility and fertilizing abilities. This post-testicular maturation coincides with sperm epigenetic profile changes that influence the progeny outcome. While recent studies underscored the dynamics of small non-coding RNAs in the maturing spermatozoa, little is known regarding sperm methylation changes and their impact at the post-fertilization level. To map out the sperm methylome dynamics, we purified spermatozoa by FACS from the testis and the different epididymal segments (i.e. caput, corpus and cauda) of CAG/su9-DsRed2; Acr3-EGFP transgenic mice. Reduced-Representation Bisulfite Sequencing (RRBS-Seq) performed on DNA from these respective sperm populations indicated that high methylation changes were observed between spermatozoa from the caput vs. testis with 5546 entries meeting our threshold values (q value < 0.01, methylation difference above 25 %). Most of these changes were transitory during epididymal sperm maturation according to the low number of entries identified between spermatozoa from cauda vs. testis.
2022-03-10 | GSE191051 | GEO