title: Sea urchin sperm cation-selective channels directly modulated by cAMP.
abstract: Components of the sea urchin outer egg jelly layer such as speract drastically change second messenger levels and membrane permeability in sperm. Ion channels are deeply involved in the sperm-egg dialogue in sea urchin and other species. Yet, due to the small size of sperm, studies of ion channels and their modulation by second messengers in sperm are scarce. In this report we offer the first direct evidence that cation-selective channels upwardly regulated by cAMP operate in sea urchin sperm. Due to their poor selectivity among monovalent cations, channel activation in seawater could contribute to sperm membrane repolarization during the speract response.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Genética y Fisiología Molecular, Instituto de Biotecnología, UNAM, Cuernavaca, Mexico.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sánchez
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Labarca
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Darszon
mesh_terms: D019307:1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine / Q000494:pharmacology; D015056:1-Methyl-3-isobutylxanthine / Q000494:pharmacology; D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D002412:Cations; D000242:Cyclic AMP / Q000502:physiology*; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008564:Membrane Potentials / Q000502:physiology; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors; D012617:Sea Urchins; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D002412:Cations; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D007473:Ion Channels; D047428:Protein Kinase Inhibitors; D019307:1-(5-Isoquinolinesulfonyl)-2-Methylpiperazine; D000242:Cyclic AMP; D015056:1-Methyl-3-isobutylxanthine