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Comment
. 2019 Feb 26;116(9):3361-3363.
doi: 10.1073/pnas.1900112116. Epub 2019 Jan 28.

Male reproductive tract cilia beat to a different drummer

Cheryl S Rosenfeld  1   2   3   4   5
Affiliations
Comment

Male reproductive tract cilia beat to a different drummer

Cheryl S Rosenfeld. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. .
No abstract available

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Conflict of interest statement

The author declares no conflict of interest.

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Male reproductive system and rotational movement by motile cilia in the efferent ductules. (A, Lower). Male reproductive system showing the testes, rete testis, efferent ductules, and epididymis. Inset (Upper) depicts the epithelial surface lining these structures. Motile cilia are solely present within the efferent ductules. Adapted from ref. by permission of Oxford University Press. (B) Similar to washing machine blades, the motile cilia move in a coordinated and rotational manner to agitate spermatozoa and surrounding fluid. (C) In WT mice, motile cilia swing back and forth to maintain spermatozoa in suspension and prevent agglutination. This rotational ciliary movement might also facilitate reabsorption of luminal fluid. (D) Mice deficient in two miRNA clusters have ductule ciliary dysgenesis (11). Sperm aggregation, luminal obstruction, and sperm granulomas result and lead to a fluid back pressure within the testes and eventual testis degeneration and infertility.
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