ACE2 Receptor and Its Isoform Short-ACE2 Are Expressed on Human Spermatozoa.
Marina Ramal-SanchezChiara CastelliniCostanza CiminiAngela TaraschiLuca ValbonettiArcangelo BarbonettiNicola BernabòBarbara BarboniPublished in: International journal of molecular sciences (2022)
Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) is a protein widely expressed in numerous cell types, with different biological roles mainly related to the renin-angiotensin system. Recently, ACE2 has been in the spotlight due to its involvement in the SARS-CoV-2 entry into cells. There are no data available regarding the expression of ACE2 and its short-ACE2 isoform at the protein level on human spermatozoa. Here, protein expression was demonstrated by western blot and the percentage of sperm displaying surface ACE2 was assessed by flow cytometry. Immunocytochemistry assays showed that full-length ACE2 was mainly expressed in sperm midpiece, while short ACE2 was preferentially distributed on the equatorial and post-acrosomal region of the sperm head. To our knowledge, this is the first study demonstrating the expression of protein ACE2 on spermatozoa. Further studies are warranted to determine the role of ACE2 isoforms in male reproduction.
Keyphrases
- angiotensin converting enzyme
- angiotensin ii
- sars cov
- flow cytometry
- endothelial cells
- healthcare
- binding protein
- poor prognosis
- protein protein
- stem cells
- machine learning
- cell death
- electronic health record
- induced pluripotent stem cells
- high throughput
- coronavirus disease
- single cell
- artificial intelligence
- deep learning