Inceptor facilitates acrosomal vesicle formation in spermatids and is required for male fertility.

Spermatogenesis is a crucial biological process that enables the production of functional sperm, allowing for successful reproduction. Proper germ cell differentiation and maturation require tight regulation of hormonal signals, cellular signaling pathways, and cell biological processes. The acrosome is a lysosome-related organelle at the anterior of the sperm head that contains enzymes and receptors essential for egg-sperm recognition and fusion. Even though several factors crucial for acrosome biogenesis have been discovered, the precise molecular mechanism of pro-acrosomal vesicle formation and fusion is not yet known. In this study, we investigated the role of the insulin inhibitory receptor (inceptor) in acrosome formation. Inceptor is a single-pass transmembrane protein with similarities to mannose-6-phosphate receptors (M6PR). Inceptor knockout male mice are infertile due to malformations in the acrosome and defects in the nuclear shape of spermatozoa. We show that inceptor is expressed in early spermatids and mainly localizes to vesicles between the Golgi apparatus and acrosome. Here we show that inceptor is an essential factor in the intracellular transport of

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Copyright © 2023 Bilekova, Garcia-Colomer, Cebrian-Serrano, Schirge, Krey, Sterr, Kurth, Hauck and Lickert.

Déclaration de conflit d'intérêts

HL is the inventor of patent “Novel IGFR-like receptor and uses thereof” held by the Helmholtz Zentrum München GmbH (WO2017042242) and co-inventor of the pending patent application filed by the Helmholtz Zentrum München GmbH “Novel IGFR-like 1 monoclonal antibodies and uses thereof” (WO2023002060). The remaining authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.