U.S researchers believe they have found the gene that could explain why some men are infertile. A single gene may be crucial in the final stages of sperm cell formation and laboratory mice that lacked that gene had lower sperm counts and were infertile.
Researchers at the University of North Carolina said that even the few sperm the mice did produce had significant defects. "Because this gene has a very specific effect on the development of functional sperm, it holds great potential as a target for new infertility treatments," Yi Zhang, a professor of biochemistry and biophysics at the university's school of medicine.
The study, which appears in the journal Nature, focused on the last stage in sperm cell formation, spermiogenisis, during which DNA is crammed into the head of the sperm to ensure that i can penetrate an egg. The mice that were bred without this gene produced very few mature sperm and those that were produced had abnormalities in the head and tail.
Further research on humans is still needed. "The first thing we need to know is whether people have mutations of this gene," said Zhang.
According to the National Institute of Health, 1 in 6 couples have trouble conceiving and of those 30 - 40% of the men are infertile.
[Source: Yahoo News]
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