Spermatogenesis in the boar

Abstract

In order to study kinetics of the spermatogenic epithelium in the adult boar, a method has been developed to prepare seminiferous tubules mounted as a whole, after which these tubules have been processed and studied as described previously only for rats, mice and hamsters. The tubules were fixed in Zenker for 24 hours and stained with periodic acid - Schiff - haematoxylin to identify the steps in spermatid development, or by Harris' hemalum to identify spermatogonia and spermatogonial divisions. Spermatid development in the boar is comparable with spermatid development in small laboratory rodents. The spermatogenic cycle was divided into 12 steps, each characterized by one step in the development of the acrosome or the shape of the nucleus of the spermatids. By studying whole mounts we could distinguish four classes of spermatogonia in the boar: undifferentiated A spermatogonia (A s, A pr, A al), differentiating A spermatogonia (A1, A2, A3, A4), intermediate and B spermatogonia. The boar demonstrates a striking similarity with small laboratory rodents.

Enrichment of CD9<sup>+</sup> spermatogonial stem cells from goat (<i>Capra aegagrus hircus</i>) testis using magnetic microbeads

“…The isolation of this small spermatogonial population is technically challenging because of their small number, so magnetic beads are specifically useful for their isolation including stem cells from various tissues [23][24][25] and organ such as bone marrow, muscle and liver [26][27][28]. Many molecular markers have been used to identify and study undifferentiated spermatogonia and gonocytes such as promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger protein (PLZF) in rodents, non human primates and pigs [29][30][31][32], ubiquitin carboxyl esterase L1 (UCHL1) in the bull [33] and boar [32,34,35], VASA in many species including bulls [36], boars [37], primates [31] & mice [38], CD9 in mouse and rat [5]. The sorting efficiency of intact cells mainly rely on the availability of specific or particular surface markers on the membrane of stem cells.…”

Studies on a long-term use of rapeseed products in diets for boars. Pathomorphological changes in the reproductive system, liver and thyroid gland

“…Degenerative-productive changes in testes and epididymides intensified with animal age (Frankenhuis et al, 1982;Shyu et al, 1985;Kojima 1990). Studies by Houszka et al (1988) and Osvath and Wekerle (1989) (Payne and Youngblood 1995).…”

THY1 is a conserved marker of undifferentiated spermatogonia in the pre-pubertal bull testis

“…Promyelocytic leukemia zinc finger protein (PLZF) is expressed exclusively by the undifferentiated spermatogonial population in rodents, nonhuman primates, and pigs (Buaas et al 2004, Costoya et al 2004, Hermann et al 2007, Luo et al 2009). Ubiquitin carboxyl-terminal esterase L1 (UCHL1) is a general marker of spermatogonia in the bull (Herrid et al 2007) and boar (Frankenhuis et al 1982, Luo et al 2006. Additionally, expression of VASA (DDX4) has been localized to several sub-types of spermatogonia in many species including bulls (Bartholomew & Parks 2007), boars (Lee et al 2005), primates (Hermann et al 2007), and mice (Toyooka et al 2000).…”