Biol Reprod Track the topics, authors and articles important to you
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

This Article
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Email this article to a friend
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Right arrow reprints & permissions
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via HighWire
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by Kennedy, W. P.
Right arrow Articles by Polakoski, K. L.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by Kennedy, W. P.
Right arrow Articles by Polakoski, K. L.
Agricola
Right arrow Articles by Kennedy, W. P.
Right arrow Articles by Polakoski, K. L.

Biology of Reproduction, Vol 29, 999-1009, Copyright © 1983 by Society for the Study of Reproduction

ARTICLES

Gossypol inhibition of acrosin and proacrosin, and oocyte penetration by human spermatozoa

WP Kennedy, HH Van der Ven, JW Straus, AK Bhattacharyya, DP Waller, LJ Zaneveld and KL Polakoski

Gossypol, a known antispermatogenic agent, was found to effectively inhibit the highly purified boar sperm proacrosin-acrosin proteinase enzyme system by irreversibly preventing the autoproteolytic conversion of proacrosin to acrosin and reversibly inhibiting acrosin activity. The agent appears to prevent the self-catalyzed by not the acrosin- catalyzed activation of proacrosin. In additional experiments, brief exposure of human semen to concentrations of gossypol, which did not visibly alter spermatozoal motility or forward progression, was found to irreversibly inhibit the conversion of proacrosin to acrosin although the activity of the nonzymogen acrosin was not decreased, and also to prevent the human spermatozoa from penetrating denuded hamster oocytes. Gossypol inhibition of proacrosin conversion to acrosin closely paralleled the decline in oocyte penetration. Racemic (+/-) gossypol was equally as effective as the enantiomer (+) gossypol. The results suggest that the inhibition of proacrosin conversion to acrosin is a mechanism by which gossypol exerts its antifertility effect at nonspermicidal concentrations and that low levels of gossypol should be tested for their contraceptive action when placed vaginally.


This article has been cited by other articles:


Home page
 ReproductionHome page
I A Zervos, M P Tsantarliotou, G Vatzias, P Goulas, N A Kokolis, and I A Taitzoglou
Effects of dietary vitamin A intake on acrosin- and plasminogen-activator activity of ram spermatozoa
Reproduction, June 1, 2005; 129(6): 707 - 715.
[Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]


HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1983 by the Society for the Study of Reproduction.