The Role of Small Non-coding RNAs in Sperm Development
A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Biology".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (29 November 2023) | Viewed by 271
Special Issue Editors
2. Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton Heights, NSW 2305, Australia
Interests: sperm physiology; evolution; sperm-egg recognition; epididymal maturation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Interests: small RNA; microRNAs; RNA biology; gene expression regulation; RNAi; RNA technologies
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
A decrease in the quality of human semen has been reported numerous times in recent decades. However, a clear cause for this concerning trend has yet to be determined, although approximately half of the 16–25 % of couples with fertility issues experience these problems as a result of disorders of the male reproductive tract. Spermatogenesis, a sequence of specialized cell divisions that produce spermatids, and spermiogenesis, which encompasses significant morphological alteration of spermatids to produce spermatozoa, are remarkably complex biological processes which occur in the testes, yet extensive further post-testicular physical maturation of spermatozoa in the epididymis is of equal essential importance for normal sperm production. Small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs), such as the piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA) and microRNA (miRNA) classes of sRNA, play central roles in sperm production and maturation, both in the testes and the epididymis. More recently, global alteration of the sRNA profile of sperm post exposure of the male reproductive tract to a wide range of environmental stressors has been associated with reduced semen quality, infertility, and poor health outcomes in offspring.
This Special Issue of the International Journal of Molecular Sciences seeks original research articles or reviews of the current literature which cover the roles played by any species of small regulatory RNA across any stage of the development of physiologically normal spermatozoa. Studies that document the alterations to the global sRNA profile of spermatozoa post exposure of the male reproductive tract to environmental stressors, and the consequences of these changes to sperm production, maturation and quality, and the health outcomes of offspring, are also welcome. However, research focusing on the use of mammalian experimental model systems is preferred.
Prof. Dr. Brett Nixon
Dr. Andrew Eamens
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- spermatozoa
- spermatogenesis
- spermiogenesis
- testes
- post-testicular maturation
- epididymis
- small regulatory RNAs (sRNAs)
- small non-coding RNAs (sRNAs)
- piwi-interacting RNAs (piRNAs)
- microRNAs (miRNAs)
- transfer RNA-derived RNA fragments (tRFs)
- endogenous small-interfering RNAs (endo-siRNAs)
- environmental stressors
- infertility
- offspring health
