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PMID: 8253064 Published · ppublish English Comparative Study Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

Tetanus toxin light chain expression in Sertoli cells of transgenic mice causes alterations of the actin cytoskeleton and disrupts spermatogenesis.

The EMBO journal ·Vol. 12 ·No. 9 ·1993-09-00 ·Pages 3365-72

Eisel U, Reynolds K, Riddick M, Zimmer A, Niemann H, Zimmer A

Abstract

Tetanus toxin is a powerful neurotoxin known to inhibit neurotransmitter release. The tetanus toxin light chain is a metalloprotease that cleaves some members of the synaptobrevin gene family with high specificity. Here, we report the expression of a synthetic gene encoding the tetanus toxin light chain in the seminiferous epithelium of transgenic mice. Spermatogenesis was severely impaired and mature spermatozoa were completely absent. Late spermatids exhibited pleomorphic shapes and acrosomal distortions. The number of Leydig cells was greatly increased. In situ hybridization analysis revealed that the toxin acts on Sertoli cells. Affected cells exhibited an aberrant distribution of actin filaments and many cells contained large vacuoles. Our results demonstrate that tetanus toxin is active in non-neuronal cells and suggest an important function for members of the synaptobrevin gene family during the late stages of spermatogenesis.

Related Genes
tetLC
MeSH Terms
Actins/metabolism Amino Acid Sequence Animals Base Sequence Cells, Cultured Cytoskeleton/ultrastructure Female Gene Expression Genes, Synthetic In Situ Hybridization Macromolecular Substances Male Mice Mice, Transgenic Molecular Sequence Data Plasmids Protein Biosynthesis Restriction Mapping Sertoli Cells/metabolism,ultrastructure Spermatogenesis Tetanus Toxin/biosynthesis,genetics Transcription, Genetic
Chemicals
Actins Macromolecular Substances Tetanus Toxin
Authors & Affiliations
6 authors, click to expand affiliations / ORCID
Eisel U
Developmental Biology Unit, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, MD 20892.
Reynolds K
Riddick M
Zimmer A
Niemann H
Zimmer A
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Article Info
Journal
The EMBO journal
Abbr.
EMBO J
ISSN
0261-4189
Published
1993-09-00
Pages
3365-72
Language
English
Region
England
NLM ID
8208664
PMCID
PMC413610
Subset
IM
Databases
GENBANK
L19522
External Links
PubMed source PMC Full Text View journal details
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