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Chinese Journal of Applied Ecology ›› 2016, Vol. 27 ›› Issue (12): 4045-4051.doi: 10.13287/j.1001-9332.201612.001

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Effects of cadmium on protein tyrosine phosphorylation of mouse spermatozoa and the protective role of EGTA

WANG Li-rui, YANG Qiang-zhen, LI Yu-hua, LI Si-si, ZHANG Yu-kun, FU Jie-li, ZHEN Lin-qing, LI Xin-hong   

  1. Shanghai Key Laboratory of Veterinary, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiaotong University, Shanghai 200240, China
  • Received:2016-04-07 Online:2016-12-18 Published:2016-12-18
  • Contact: * E-mail: lixinhong7172@sjtu.edu.cn
  • Supported by:
    This work was supported by the Key Project of Shanghai Municipal Agricultural Commission (2014-2-5) and Shanghai Jiaotong University National Students’ Science and Technology Innovation Project (12166).

Abstract: In this study, we explored the effects of cadmium (Cd) on mouse sperm motility parame-ters, protein tyrosine phosphorylation and the location of tyrosine-phosphorylated targets using computer-assisted sperm analysis (CASA), western blot (WB) and immunofluorescence technique coupled to sperm in vitro culture method, respectively. The results showed sperm motility was inhibi-ted by Cd in a dose-dependent manner and when Cd increased to 1.0 μmol·L-1, sperm motility was inhibited significantly (P<0.05). Simultaneously, protein tyrosine phosphorylation was enhanced by Cd and in particular, the tyrosine phosphorylation of ~55 kDa proteins was greatly promoted when Cd concentrations were greater or equal to 1.0 μmol·L-1 (P<0.05). Importantly, these tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins were mainly localized in the middle piece of mouse sperm. However, when sperm was incubated with 30 μmol·L-1 ethylene glycol tetraacetic acid (EGTA) and 10 μmol·L-1 Cd concurrently, both the tyrosine phosphorylation of ~55 kDa proteins and sperm motility were not changed obviously (P>0.05). These results suggested that Cd may inhibit sperm motility by inducing the tyrosine phosphorylation of ~55 kDa proteins in the middle piece and EGTA could chelate Cd ions to relieve its toxicity. This study demonstrated that Cd induced the tyrosine phosphorylation of a specific subset of proteins and thus decreased sperm motility. Interes-tingly, EGTA acted as an inhibitor to block Cd from entering the sperm, which provided a novel research method for revealing the molecular mechanisms of reproductive toxicity caused by Cd.