Irp1 is essential for spermatogenesis independent of its function in iron metabolism
Dr. Aileen Harrer from the research lab of Prof. Andreas Meinhardt, Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, at the University of Giessen has been awarded the Quarterly Publication Award (QPA) IV/2024 of the Anatomische Gesellschaft for their study Iron regulatory protein 1-deficient mice exhibit hypospermatogenesis recently published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
The pathogenic mechanisms underlying hypospermatogenesis are still poorly understood, and unlike spermatogenesis arrest, no responsible factors or genes have been identified yet. The award-winning study by Harrer and co-workers demonstrated for the first time, using Irp1 knockout mice, that iron regulatory protein 1 (Irp1) plays an important role in spermatogenesis that is independent of the regulation of iron metabolism. Mechanistic approaches suggest a disruption in the cell cycle and DNA repair processes, which then fail to compensate for the observed damage caused by reactive oxygen species, ultimately leading to germ cell loss during spermatogenesis.
Harrer A, Ghatpande N, Grimaldini T, Fietz D, Kumar V, Pleuger C, Fijak M, Föppl DT, Rynio LP, Schuppe HC, Pilatz A, Bartkuhn M, Procida-Kowalski T, Guttmann-Raviv N, Bhushan S, Meyron-Holtz EG, Meinhardt A. Iron regulatory protein 1-deficient mice exhibit hypospermatogenesis. J Biol Chem. 2025 Jan;301(1):108067. doi: 10.1016/j.jbc.2024.108067. Epub 2024 Dec 10. PMID: 39667502; PMCID: PMC11758943.
