Aberrant protamine 1/protamine 2 ratios in sperm of infertile human males.
Protamines were extracted from the sperm of fertile and infertile human males and the relative proportion of protamines 1, 2, and 3 were determined by scanning microdensitometry following electrophoresis of total protamine in polyacrylamide gels. The proportion of the three protamines was found to be similar in sperm obtained from different normal males. The distribution of protamines in sperm obtained from a select group of infertile males producing an elevated level of large sperm heads, in contrast, was different from that of the fertile males.
Balhorn
R
R
Biomedical Sciences Division, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, California 94550.
Reed
S
S
Tanphaichitr
N
N
D003720:Densitometry; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D011479:Protamines / Q000032:analysis*; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000032:analysis*
D011479:Protamines; C046533:protamine P1; C048529:protamine P2; C052196:protamine P3