What is the genuine hope to deal with the worldwide issue of infertility? That's the question that many researchers are working on for so long now. New discoveries that play a significant role in sperm development may be able to shed light on the problem of male infertility. Scientists from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute believe that they have discovered that genetic defects in Jhdma2a may also cause other infertility conditions in men.
Howard Hughes' team noted that mice lacking the Jhdma2a gene were infertile and produced small amounts of abnormal sperm. One of Britain's leading male reproductive health experts has expressed great hope that the discovery could lead to some answers to why some men are infertile. Many of the reasons for men's "sub-fertility" remain unclear to be fully understood.
Abnormal sperm or very low sperm are two reasons why some men are unable to have a baby. Many studies look at genetic defects to be responsible for these conditions. A team of experts from Howard Hughes believed that the Jhdma2a gene was essential for "spermiogenesis", which allows the DNA needed to build an embryo to form a solid ball inside the sperm's head so that it can penetrate the egg outside. Spermiogenesis is the final stage of sperm maturation, in which the cell forms its own pseudopod, acquires the ability to crawl, and is able to fertilize the oocyte.
To determine if the Jhdma2a gene might affect sperm production, they studied mice and bred these animals without Jhdma2a genetics. These mice were found to have unusually small testicles, very low sperm production, and were unable to reproduce. They even noted that not only did these mice have extraordinarily small testicles, but the small number of sperm they produced had unusually large heads and tails that were found to be inactive. Examination of sperm using a microscope dye revealed that DNA was not properly packed on the sperm's head.
"Mistakes in this gene may be the cause of some cases of infertility in men," said Dr. Zhang, project leader of Howard Hughes' team. He explains the reason for the impact and says that this particular gene has a direct impact on the development of active sperm. He further suggests that this gene has a great potential as a target for infertility treatments in the future that may interfere with other functions in the body.
Although the genetic significance of Jhdma2a has already been proven in mice, there is no guarantee that it will have the same effect on humans. The next big step for the group is to focus on the DNA of infertile men to see if it is not in them.
Allan Pacey, a renowned doctor and a senior professor of Andrology at the University of Sheffield and Secretary of the British Fertility Society says that the genes that regulated sperm growth were poorly understood. “The way the DNA of sperm is attached to the sperm head is very different and we know very little about that. He further said that it would be very helpful to translate this study to men and see if it could explain why some men do not produce healthy sperm so they are not fertile.
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