• PMID: 9207130
• Gene Name: POU5F2
• Condition: Reduced fertility
• Association: Associated
• Sex: Male
• Infertility type: Male infertility
• Other associated phenotypes: Reduced fertility

Reduced fertility in mice deficient for the POU protein sperm-1

Pearse RV 2nd, Drolet DW, Kalla KA, Hooshmand F, Bermingham JR Jr, Rosenfeld MG.

Members of the POU-homeodomain gene family encode transcriptional regulatory molecules that play important roles in terminal differentiation of many organ systems. Sperm-1 (Sprm-1) is a POU domain factor that is exclusively expressed in the differentiating male germ cell. We show here that the Sprm-1 protein is expressed in the haploid spermatid and that 129/Sv Sprm-1(-/-) mice are subfertile when compared with wild-type or heterozygous littermates yet exhibit normal testicular morphology and produce normal numbers of mobile spermatozoa. Our data suggest that the Sprm-1 protein plays a discrete regulatory function in the haploid spermatid, which is required for the optimal function, but not the terminal differentiation, of the male germ cell. FAU - Pearse, R V 2nd AU - Pearse RV 2nd AD - Eukaryotic Regulatory Biology Program, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of California, San Diego, CA 92093-0648, USA. FAU - Drolet, D W AU - Drolet DW FAU - Kalla, K A AU - Kalla KA FAU - Hooshmand, F AU - Hooshmand F FAU - Bermingham, J R Jr AU - Bermingham JR Jr