• PMID: 28395323
• Gene Name: CUL3
• Condition: Role in sperm flagellum
• Association: Associated
• Sex: Male
• Infertility type: Male infertility
• Other associated phenotypes: Role in sperm flagellum

Defining the human sperm microtubulome: an integrated genomics approach

Jumeau F, Chalmel F, Fernandez-Gomez FJ, Carpentier C, Obriot H, Tardivel M, Caillet-Boudin ML, Rigot JM, Rives N, Buée L, Sergeant N, Mitchell V.

Sperm motility notably depends on the structural integrity of the flagellum and the regulation of microtubule dynamics. Although researchers have started to use "omics" techniques to characterize the human sperm's molecular landscape, the constituents responsible for the assembly, organization, and dynamics of the flagellum microtubule have yet to be fully defined. In this study, we defined a core set of 116 gene products associated with the human sperm microtubulome (including products potentially involved in abnormal ciliary phenotypes and male infertility disorders). To this end, we designed and applied an integrated genomics workflow and combined relevant proteomics, transcriptomics, and interactomics datasets to reconstruct a dynamic interactome map. By further integrating phenotypic information, we defined a disease-interaction network; this enabled us to highlight a number of novel factors potentially associated with altered sperm motility and male fertility. Lastly, we experimentally validated the expression pattern of two candidate genes (CUL3 and DCDC2C) that had never previously been associated with male germline differentiation. Our analysis suggested that CUL3 and DCDC2C's products have important roles in the sperm flagellum. Taken as a whole, our results demonstrate that an integrated genomics strategy can highlight relevant molecular factors in specific sperm components. This approach could be easily extended by including other "omics" data (from asthenozoospermic men, for example) and identifying other critical proteins from the human sperm microtubulome. CI - © The Authors 2016. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Society for the Study of Reproduction. All rights reserved. For permissions, please journals.permissions@oup.com. FAU - Jumeau, Fanny AU - Jumeau F AD - EA 4308, Department of Reproductive Biology and Spermiology-CECOS, Lille University Medical Center, Lille, France. AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France. FAU - Chalmel, Frédéric AU - Chalmel F AD - INSERM U1085-IRSET, 9 avenue du Professeur Léon Bernard, Rennes, France. FAU - Fernandez-Gomez, Francisco-Jose AU - Fernandez-Gomez FJ AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France. FAU - Carpentier, Céline AU - Carpentier C AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France. FAU - Obriot, Hélène AU - Obriot H AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France. FAU - Tardivel, Meryem AU - Tardivel M AD - BioImaging Center Lille-Nord de France, School of Medicine, University of Lille 2, Lille, France. FAU - Caillet-Boudin, Marie-Laure AU - Caillet-Boudin ML AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France. FAU - Rigot, Jean-Marc AU - Rigot JM AD - EA 4308, Andrology Unit, Lille University Medical Center, Lille, France. FAU - Rives, Nathalie AU - Rives N AD - EA 4308, Reproductive Biology Laboratory-CECOS, Rouen University Medical Center, and Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Rouen, Rouen, France. FAU - Buée, Luc AU - Buée L AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France. FAU - Sergeant, Nicolas AU - Sergeant N AD - INSERM UMR 837-1, Alzheimer & Tauopathies, Jean-Pierre Aubert Research Center, Lille, France.