Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2011 Jan;13(1):11-7.
doi: 10.1038/aja.2010.64. Epub 2010 Nov 1.

Epididymis cholesterol homeostasis and sperm fertilizing ability

Fabrice Saez  1 , Aurélia Ouvrier, Joël R Drevet
Affiliations
Review

Epididymis cholesterol homeostasis and sperm fertilizing ability

Fabrice Saez et al. Asian J Androl. 2011 Jan.

Abstract

Cholesterol, being the starting point of steroid hormone synthesis, is a long known modulator of both female and male reproductive physiology especially at the level of the gonads and the impact cholesterol has on gametogenesis. Less is known about the effects cholesterol homeostasis may have on postgonadic reproductive functions. Lately, several data have been reported showing how imbalanced cholesterol levels may particularly affect the post-testicular events of sperm maturation that lead to fully fertile male gametes. This review will focus on that aspect and essentially centers on how cholesterol is important for the physiology of the mammalian epididymis and spermatozoa.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Davis BK, Byrne R, Hungund B. Studies on the mechanism of capacitation. II. Evidence for lipid transfer between plasma membrane of rat sperm and serum albumin during capacitation in vitro. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1979;558:257–66. - PubMed
    1. Abou-haila A, Tulsiani DR. Signal transduction pathways that regulate sperm capacitation and the acrosome reaction. Arch Biochem Biophys. 2009;485:72–81. - PubMed
    1. Hamilton DW, Jones AL, Fawcett DW. Cholesterol biosynthesis in the mouse epididymis and ductus deferens: a biochemical and morphological study. Biol Reprod. 1969;1:167–84. - PubMed
    1. Evans RR, Johnson AD. The metabolic activity of the bovine epididymis. III. Cholesterol and esterified cholesterol metabolism. J Reprod Fertil. 1975;43:527–30. - PubMed
    1. Johnston DS, Jelinsky SA, Bang HJ, DiCandeloro P, Wilson E, et al. The mouse epididymal transcriptome: transcriptional profiling of segmental gene expression in the epididymis. Biol Reprod. 2005;73:404–13. - PubMed