title: Spermatogonial proliferation patterns in men with azoospermia of different etiologies.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To demonstrate the pattern(s) of spermatogonial proliferation in different spermatogenic disorders.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective case-control study. Teaching hospital.
  
  
  METHODS
  Azoospermic men who underwent testicular biopsy for sperm recovery and preparation for intracytoplasmic sperm injection.
  
  
  METHODS
  Testicular biopsy evaluation by quantitative immunohistochemistry for proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA).
  
  
  METHODS
  The expression of PCNA in spermatogonia as an index of proliferating activity in testes with focal spermatogenesis, spermatocyte maturation arrest, or normal spermatogenesis.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In biopsies with focal spermatogenesis (11 men), there was a statistically significant reduction of PCNA-labeled spermatogonia in seminiferous tubules showing spermatocyte arrest compared with the expression in adjacent tubules with advanced spermatogenic stage or in normal spermatogenesis (obstructive azoospermia, six men). However, PCNA expression in tubules of the group with complete maturation arrest (six men) was significantly higher compared with the same spermatogenic defect-spermatocyte arrest-within focal spermatogenesis biopsies.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Different causes underlie the spermatogenic disorders reported in this study. In focal spermatogenesis, the disorder is associated with the presence of mitotic inactive spermatogonia. The detection of normal active spermatogonia in the spermatocyte arrest group indicates that the spermatogenic defect, which is accompanied by meiosis impairment, is not related to a malfunction of spermatogonial proliferation.
authors: Institute for the Study of Fertility, Lis Maternity Hospital, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
authors: Batia
authors: B
authors: Bar-Shira Maymon
authors: Leah
authors: L
authors: Yogev
authors: Haim
authors: H
authors: Yavetz
authors: Beatriz
authors: B
authors: Lifschitz-Mercer
authors: Letizia
authors: L
authors: Schreiber
authors: Sandra E
authors: SE
authors: Kleiman
authors: Amnon
authors: A
authors: Botchan
authors: Ron
authors: R
authors: Hauser
authors: Gedalia
authors: G
authors: Paz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002453:Cell Cycle; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008297:Male; D009845:Oligospermia / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018809:Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen / Q000378:metabolism; D012671:Seminiferous Tubules / Q000378:metabolism; D013090:Spermatocytes / Q000473:pathology; D013091:Spermatogenesis; D013093:Spermatogonia / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: D018809:Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen