RANKL regulates male reproductive function

Publikation: Bidrag til tidsskriftTidsskriftartikelForskningfagfællebedømt

Dokumenter

  • Martin Blomberg Jensen
  • Christine Hjorth Andreassen
  • Anne Jørgensen
  • John Erik Nielsen
  • Li Juel Mortensen
  • Ida Marie Boisen
  • Schwarz, Peter
  • Jorma Toppari
  • Roland Baron
  • Beate Lanske
  • Juul, Anders

Infertile men have few treatment options. Here, we demonstrate that the transmembrane receptor activator of NF-kB ligand (RANKL) signaling system is active in mouse and human testis. RANKL is highly expressed in Sertoli cells and signals through RANK, expressed in most germ cells, whereas the RANKL-inhibitor osteoprotegerin (OPG) is expressed in germ and peritubular cells. OPG treatment increases wild-type mouse sperm counts, and mice with global or Sertoli-specific genetic suppression of Rankl have increased male fertility and sperm counts. Moreover, RANKL levels in seminal fluid are high and distinguishes normal from infertile men with higher specificity than total sperm count. In infertile men, one dose of Denosumab decreases RANKL seminal fluid concentration and increases serum Inhibin-B and anti-Müllerian-hormone levels, but semen quality only in a subgroup. This translational study suggests that RANKL is a regulator of male reproductive function, however, predictive biomarkers for treatment-outcome requires further investigation in placebo-controlled studies.

OriginalsprogEngelsk
Artikelnummer2450
TidsskriftNature Communications
Vol/bind12
Udgave nummer1
Antal sider15
ISSN2041-1723
DOI
StatusUdgivet - dec. 2021

Bibliografisk note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2021, The Author(s).

ID: 286313377