RNA and ncRNA in testicular tissues

Normal sperm cell differentiation, termed spermatogenesis, requires reorganisation of sperm DNA structure.

The sperm head is much smaller than the nucleus of other cells and DNA must therefore adopt a highly condensed form in order to fit.

This mechanism is hypothesized to be regulated by noncoding RNA (ncRNA).

An essential role for ncRNA in regulation of spermatogenesis in mice has been demonstrated spermatogenesis (Yadav & Kotaja 2014). But, the impact of ncRNA on male fertility is poorly understood.

This research will further investigate the role of ncRNA in spermatogenesis, profiling sperm ncRNA, RNA and protein content in testicular samples that represent three key stages of spermatogenesis.