World's First Discovery of Protein Synthesis in Sperm
New Insights into the Causes of Male Infertility and Contraceptive Development
Professor Bang Myeong-geol's research team from the Department of Animal Biotechnology at Chung-Ang University has presented a new foundation for studying the causes of male infertility.
A father holding a baby is attending a special lecture on pregnancy and childbirth at Ilsan Cha Hospital in Goyang, Gyeonggi Province. Photo by Yonhap News
On the 22nd, Chung-Ang University announced that it had identified for the first time in the world that sperm can synthesize proteins in real time. This discovery was made while observing proteins synthesized in real time during the functional changes sperm undergo to enter the egg. This breaks the previous research that claimed protein synthesis was impossible due to the structural characteristics of sperm.
The research team revealed that proteins related to the acrosome (a cellular organelle in the head part of the sperm) formation are closely linked to the fertilization ability of sperm. They also found that active synthesis of acrosome-related proteins is essential for maintaining fertilization ability, and if protein synthesis is not precisely carried out in the early stages, fertilization may fail.
This study provides important clues not only for diagnosing and identifying the causes of male infertility but also for developing contraceptives. Until now, research on infertility causes and contraceptive development has mainly focused on women. Since pregnancy outcomes are also influenced by men, developing methods to address the causes of male infertility holds significance equal to that of female infertility issues.
Supported by the National Research Foundation of Korea's Science and Engineering University-Focused Research Institute Project and the Sejong Fellowship, the study was led by Research Professor Park Yoo-jin of Chung-Ang University's Institute of Life and Environment as the first author, with Professor Bang as the corresponding author. The research details were published online on the 18th in the academic journal Journal of Advanced Research.
Professor Bang said, "We have proven for the first time that changes in sperm proteins are closely related to fertilization ability," adding, "We hope this research will be used as basic data to regulate sperm fertilization function or to develop new contraceptives."
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