Open AccessRadial spoke head 6 homolog a is required for sperm flagellum formation and male fertility in mice
Author(s) -
Ferheen Abbasi,
Haruhiko Miyata,
Keisuke Shimada,
Akane Morohoshi,
Kaori Nozawa,
Takafumi Matsumura,
Zoulan Xu,
Putri Pratiwi,
Masahito Ikawa
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
journal of cell science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.384
H-Index - 278
eISSN - 1477-9137
pISSN - 0021-9533
DOI - 10.1242/jcs.221648
Subject(s) - axoneme , flagellum , biology , sperm , microbiology and biotechnology , sperm motility , chlamydomonas , motility , anatomy , male infertility , infertility , genetics , gene , pregnancy , mutant
The flagellum is an evolutionarily conserved appendage used for sensing and locomotion. Its backbone is the axoneme and a component of the axoneme is the radial spoke (RS), a protein complex implicated in flagellar motility regulation. Numerous diseases occur if the axoneme is improperly formed, such as primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) and infertility. RSPH6A is an ortholog of Chlamydomonas RSP6 in the RS head and is evolutionarily conserved. While some RS head proteins have been linked to PCD, little is known about RSPH6A. Here, we show that mouse RSPH6A is testis-enriched and localized in the flagellum. Rsph6a knockout (KO) male mice are infertile due to short, immotile spermatozoa. Observation of the KO testis indicates that the axoneme can elongate but is disrupted before accessory structures are formed. Manchette removal is also impaired in the KO testis. Further, RSPH9, another radial spoke protein, disappeared in the Rsph6a KO flagella. These data indicate that RSPH6A is essential for sperm flagellar assembly and male fertility in mice.