title: Interleukin-6 disrupts blood-testis barrier through inhibiting protein degradation or activating phosphorylated ERK in Sertoli cells.
abstract: It has been recently ascribed to several inflammatory cytokines (i.e. TGF-β3, TNF-α, and IL-1) a functional role in regulating Sertoli cell blood-testis barrier (BTB) dynamics. In the testis, IL-6 inhibits meiotic DNA synthesis during the seminiferous epithelium cycle, reduces sperm motility and influences the secretion of transferrin and inhibin B by Sertoli cells. Also, it has been shown that IL-6 affects tight junction permeability in Sertoli cells, but, little is known about its role in regulating the BTB. The aim of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanisms by which IL-6 affects BTB dynamics. We show that IL-6 perturbs the integrity of the BTB, and alters the normal localization and steady-state levels of BTB integral membrane proteins. We demonstrated that IL-6 regulates the BTB by inhibiting the degradation of BTB constitutive proteins and activating ERK-MAPK pathways. Our results provide mechanistic insight into the roles of IL-6 in regulating BTB dynamics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Huijuan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Yimeng
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Guishuan
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Zhimin
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Lin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: 1] Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, School of Life Sciences, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China [2] Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, Hefei, Anhui 230027, China.
authors.forename: Fei
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001814:Blood-Testis Barrier / Q000502:physiology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004789:Enzyme Activation; D015850:Interleukin-6 / Q000378:metabolism*; D020935:MAP Kinase Signaling System / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D010766:Phosphorylation / Q000502:physiology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D012708:Sertoli Cells / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D015850:Interleukin-6; D020928:Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases