Isolation and next generation sequencing of epididymal extracellular vesicles reveals segmental patterns of miRNA expression and a potential mechanism for modification of the sperm epigenome.

ABSTRACT: Interest in the sperm epigenome continues to grow in view of the realization that it is vulnerable to dynamic modifications arising from a variety of paternal environment exposures and that this legacy can serve as an important determinant of intergenerational inheritance. It has been postulated that such exchange may be communicated to maturing populations of spermatozoa via the transfer of small non-coding RNAs in a mechanism involving epididymosomes; small membrane bound vesicles secreted by the soma of the male reproductive tract (epididymis). Herein we confirm that mouse epididymosomes encapsulate an impressive repertoire of >350 microRNA (miRNA), a majority (~60%) of which are also represented in the miRNA signature of maturing spermatozoa. This includes >50 miRNAs that were found e

ORGANISM(S): Mus musculus

SUBMITTER: Brett Nixon 

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-79500 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress