Incidence of tail structure distortions associated with dysplasia of the fibrous sheath in human spermatozoa

Abstract

Dysplasia of the fibrous sheath (DFS) is an anomaly found in spermatozoa of severe asthenozoospermic patients. Marked hypertrophy and hyperplasia of the fibrous sheath is the common characteristic. Immunocytochemistry allowed us to visualize the distortions and incidence of tail structure abnormalities associated with this phenotype in six patients; four with a complete form and two with an incomplete form of this pathology previously diagnosed and studied by electron microscopy. Microtubules and fibrous sheaths were studied using monoclonal antibodies against alpha-acetylated tubulin and anti-FSC1 (the major protein component of the fibrous sheath). Mitochondrial sheaths were visualized using the mitochondrion-specific vital dye MitoTracker green FM(TM). Phase contrast and fluorescent microscopy of semen samples showed large numbers of spermatozoa with short, rigid, thick and irregular tails. As expected, anomalous and completely distorted fibrous sheaths, severe alterations of the axonemal microtubules and different patterns of mitochondrial sheath configurations were found. While ultrastructural studies of thin sections allow an in-depth knowledge of the internal organization of the sperm tail, fluorescence labelling of selected sperm components affords a unique view of the whole flagellum including topographical relationships of various organelles. The combination of these different approaches is essential for a comprehensive understanding of this particular pathology.