Plasma membrane Ca2+ ATPase 4 is required for sperm motility and male fertility.

in The Journal of biological chemistry (2004), 279(27), 28220-6

Calcium and Ca(2+)-dependent signals play a crucial role in sperm motility and mammalian fertilization, but the molecules and mechanisms underlying these Ca(2+)-dependent pathways are incompletely ... [more ▼]

Calcium and Ca(2+)-dependent signals play a crucial role in sperm motility and mammalian fertilization, but the molecules and mechanisms underlying these Ca(2+)-dependent pathways are incompletely understood. Here we show that homozygous male mice with a targeted gene deletion of isoform 4 of the plasma membrane calcium/calmodulin-dependent calcium ATPase (PMCA), which is highly enriched in the sperm tail, are infertile due to severely impaired sperm motility. Furthermore, the PMCA inhibitor 5-(and-6)-carboxyeosin diacetate succinimidyl ester reduced sperm motility in wild-type animals, thus mimicking the effects of PMCA4 deficiency on sperm motility and supporting the hypothesis of a pivotal role of the PMCA4 on the regulation of sperm function and intracellular Ca(2+) levels. [less ▲]