S100A7 is present in human sperm and Fallopian tubes

TEIJEIRO JUAN MANUEL Y MARINI PATRICIA

Buenos Aires

Simposio; • 3th Latin-American Symposium Reproductive Immunology; 2011

Introduction: Porcine Sperm Binding Glycoprotein (SBG) binds to the head of boar sperm and is involved in sperm selection. In previous works we identified S100A7 as a porcine sperm protein that interacts with SBG. In this work we search for this protein in human sperm. Also, as S100A7 was found to be a major Escherichia coli –cidal factor of female genital tract, we analyze the presence of S100A7 in human and pig oviduct. Materials and methods: Western Blot and immunolocalization using human anti-S100A7 on boar and human sperm and porcine and human oviduct were performed. Results: Anti-human S100A7 antibodies show that this protein localizes to the head of boar and human sperm. Also, S100A7 was found in human oviduct, but no signal was detected in porcine oviduct. Conclusion: The localization of porcine homologous S100A7 at the head of sperm leads us to suggest that the protein might be involved in the negative selection of sperm by SBG in pigs. Human S100A7 is a component of the innate immune system and shows antibacterial properties, particularly over Escherichia coli, a species that has demonstrated deleterious effects on sperm. We found that S100A7 localizes at the head of human sperm and at apical cytoplasm of human epithelial oviductal cells. Thus, we report the presence of S100A7 in human sperm and oviduct. In human, an antimicrobial role seems likely for S100A7; in porcine sperm the studied protein binds to SBG suggesting a function in sperm selection, but an antimicrobial function cannot be ruled out.