Vol.26 No.2£¨2004 April£©£º133-138 The Regulation of Sertoli Cell Tight Junction Dynamics in Spermatogenesis ZHAO Yong, ZHANG Yuan Qiang* £¨Department of Histology and Embryology, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an 710032, China£© Abstract: During spermatogenesis, developing leptotene and preleptotene spermatocytes must translocate from the basal to the adluminal compartment of the seminiferous epithelium so that fully developed spermatids can be released to the tubular lumen at spermiation. Obviously, the opening and closing of the inter-Sertoli tight junctions that constitute the blood-testis barrier are regulated by an array of signal molecules. Transforming growth factor ¦Â3 (TGF¦Â3), occludin, protein kinase A and protein kinase C have been found to be relative to the regulation. This review summarizes some of the recent advances and reviews several models that can be used to study TJ dynamics. Key words: signal transduction; tight junction; spermatogenesis; testis *Corresponding author, E-mail: zhangyq@fmmu.edu.cn |