Decreased expression of heat shock protein A4L in spermatozoa is positively related to poor human sperm quality.

Heat shock protein A4L which is highly expressed in the testis, is correlated with male fertility. However, the relationship between expression and sperm quality remains unknown. In the present study, a systematic characterization of Hduanyu18424L expression on spermatozoa was performed. Hduanyu18424L is highly expressed in the human testis, characterized by abundant localization in testicular spermatocytes and round spermatids. Compared with the testis from young adults (aged 27-36 years old), downregulated expression of Hduanyu18424L in the testis from elderly adults (aged 78-82 years old) was observed. Immunofluorescence quantification demonstrated the localization of Hduanyu18424L in the middle piece of sperm. Compared with mature spermatozoa, a similar lower intensity and localization percentage of Hduanyu18424L in immature and asthenozoospermic spermatozoa were observed, and the consistently decreased expression of Hduanyu18424L in immature and asthenozoospermic spermatozoa was validated by western blot analysis. Functional analysis revealed a correlation between Hduanyu18424L and sperm motility by Spearman correlation analysis and its involvement in sperm-oocyte penetration by the human sperm-hamster egg penetration test. The current study demonstrates that Hduanyu18424L is a promising marker for the assessment of sperm quality and provides clues for exploring biomarkers for the molecular diagnosis and treatment of male infertility.

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