title: Desialylation of Spermatozoa and Epithelial Cell Glycocalyx Is a Consequence of Bacterial Infection of the Epididymis.
abstract: Urinary tract infections caused by uropathogenic Escherichia coli (UPEC) pathovars belong to the most frequent infections in humans. In men, pathogens can also spread to the genital tract via the continuous ductal system, eliciting bacterial prostatitis and/or epididymo-orchitis. Antibiotic treatment usually clears pathogens in acute epididymitis; however, the fertility of patients can be permanently impaired. Because a premature acrosome reaction was observed in an UPEC epididymitis mouse model, and sialidases on the sperm surface are considered to be activated via proteases of the acrosome, we aimed to investigate whether alterations of the sialome of epididymal spermatozoa and surrounding epithelial cells occur during UPEC infection. In UPEC-elicited acute epididymitis in mice, a substantial loss of N-acetylneuraminic acid residues was detected in epididymal spermatozoa and epithelial cells using combined laser microdissection/HPLC-ESI-MS analysis. In support, a substantial reduction of sialic acid residues bound to the surface of spermatozoa was documented in men with a recent history of E. coli-associated epididymitis. In vitro, such an UPEC induced N-acetylneuraminic acid release from human spermatozoa was effectively counteracted by a sialidase inhibitor. These findings strongly suggest a substantial remodeling of the glycocalyx of spermatozoa and epididymal epithelial cells by endogenous sialidases after a premature acrosome reaction during acute epididymitis.
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Anatomy and Cell Biology and Biochemistry and.
authors.forename: Farhad
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Khosravi
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Anatomy and Cell Biology and.
authors.forename: Vera
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Michel
authors.affiliation: Biochemistry and.
authors.forename: Christina E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Galuska
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Anatomy and Cell Biology and.
authors.forename: Sudhanshu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bhushan
authors.affiliation: Biochemistry and.
authors.forename: Philipp
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Christian
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Pediatric Urology, and Andrology, Faculty of Medicine, Justus Liebig University, 35392 Giessen, Germany and.
authors.forename: Hans-Christian
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Schuppe
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Pediatric Urology, and Andrology, Faculty of Medicine, Justus Liebig University, 35392 Giessen, Germany and.
authors.forename: Adrian
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pilatz
authors.affiliation: Biochemistry and the Department of Reproductive Biology, Leibniz Institute for Farm Animal Biology, 18196 Dummerstorf, Germany galuska.sebastian@fbn-dummerstorf.de.
authors.forename: Sebastian P
authors.initials: SP
authors.lastname: Galuska
authors.affiliation: From the Institutes of Anatomy and Cell Biology and andreas.meinhardt@anatomie.med.uni-giessen.de.
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Meinhardt
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004823:Epididymitis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D019276:Glycocalyx / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D019158:N-Acetylneuraminic Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D009439:Neuraminidase / Q000378:metabolism; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D056689:Uropathogenic Escherichia coli
chemical_list: D009439:Neuraminidase; D019158:N-Acetylneuraminic Acid
keywords: bacterial pathogenesis; glycosylation; glycosylation inhibitor; reproduction; sialic acid; sialidase; sperm; spermatozoa