[Frontiers in Bioscience 1, d206-213, September 1, 1996]
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INVOLVEMENT OF PROTEIN TYROSINE PHOSPHORYLATION OF HUMAN SPERM IN CAPACITATION/ACROSOME REACTION AND ZONA PELLUCIDA BINDING

Rajesh K. Naz

Division of Research, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical College of Ohio, Toledo, Ohio, USA

Received 07/23/96; Accepted 07/30/96; On-line 09/01/96

PREFACE

Fertilization is a complex process requiring the spermatozoon to undergo a cascade of events before it can fuse with and penetrate the oocyte plasma membrane. Normal spermatogenesis and three crucial steps of capacitation/acrosome exocytosis and recognition, binding and penetration of the oocyte zona pellucida, and fusion and penetration into the oocyte plasma membrane are required in normal fertility. Molecules and mechanisms involving these processes are not clearly understood. With the recent advances in technology related to cellular and molecular biology, and in vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryogenesis, the crucial steps of spermatogenesis and fertilization are rapidly being explored. During the last five years, the field of sperm structure-function relationship has been revolutionized and our knowledge of mechanistic aspects of sperm function is rapidly growing, providing us with the molecular mechanisms involved in sperm development, and approaches for diagnosis, and treatment of infertility, and immunoregulation of fertility in humans.

The pace of advancement in basic and clinical andrology has been dramatically increased and traditional means of publishing seems quite limited in keeping up with this rapid growth. Short reviews in some journals are up-to-date on individual topics, but obviously, they cannot provide an overview of the recent advances of the field as a whole. The comprehensive special issue published in "Frontiers in Bioscience" is unique in that it has eleven reviews in four fields of sperm function namely: 1) Spermatogenesis, 2) Capacitation/acrosome reaction, and oocyte zona pellucida (ZP) and plasma membrane interaction, 3) Infertility/sterility, and 4) Immunocontraception. The first chapter describes the role of CREM in spermatogenesis (F. Nantel and P. Sassone-Corsi). Second chapter (P. Morales and M. Llanos) provides an overall view of the various molecules that have been shown to be involved in the capacitation/acrosome reaction (AR) and ZP binding, and describes the importance of AR in these processes. The next five chapters focus on the key molecules and mechanisms that have been implicated in sperm physiology (capacitation/acrosome reaction), namely, cAMP pathways (C. DeJonge), calcium modulation (E. Baldi, M. Luconi, L. Bonaccorsi, C. Krausz and G. Forti), lipid dynamics (P. Martínez and A. Morros), oxidative stress and antioxidants (S. C. Sikka) and tyrosine protein phosphorylation (R. K. Naz). The eighth chapter (O. J. D'Cruz) describes the adhesion molecules that play an important role in sperm-oocyte plasma membrane interaction, after the sperm has undergone capacitation/acrosome reaction and ZP penetration. The last three chapters focus on clinical application of the basic knowledge of sperm function in the diagnosis (D. A. Ohl and A. C. Menge) and treatment (B. S. Minhas and B. A. Ripps) of infertility, and in immunocontraception (R. K. Naz). This special issue remain quite viable and will be subject to rapid update in the future as new data regarding spermatogenesis and fertilization becomes available. The authors of this special issue have pioneered a new type of dynamic and continuous presentation of data that undoubtedly will become a model for rapid dissemination of vital scientific information.

RK Naz,

Editor

S Tabibzadeh,