CatSper

Electrophysiological recording of CatSper and KSper currents

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

Suarez SS (2009) CatSper-null mutant spermatozoa are unable to ascend beyond the oviductal reservoir.

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

However, the delayed and asynchronous onset of hyperactivation has obscured whether CatSper channels are required for hyperactivation to initiate, for it to be sustained, or for both.

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

For CatSper currents recording conditions were essentially as described in Kirichok, et al. [15].

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

In addition to the pharmacological-phenocopy approach used here for study of the roles of CatSper in activation and hyperactivation of motility, we recently applied a chemical-genetic approach to extend our knowledge of the roles of PKA in the these processes.

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

Specifically, we show that acute blockade of CatSper channels with compound HC-056456 prevents the onset of hyperactivation during capacitating incubations, and that application of HC-056456 to already-hyperactivated sperm causes a rapid reversible removal of waveform asymmetry.

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

Fig. S2A shows that smaller CatSper currents could be recorded from cells bathed with solutions containing 700 nM Ca

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

Thus, to maintain hyperactivation, sperm require both open CatSper channels and available external Ca Fig. 5A we asked whether removal of HC-0546456 would allow previously-hyperactivated sperm to recover waveform asymmetry.

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

Thus, open CatSper channels and entry of external Ca

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009

(B) History plot showing rapid and reversible block of CatSper currents by 20 µM HC-056456 in buffer containing ~700 nM free Ca

PLoS ONE Alerts: New Articles Anne E. Carlson et al. 2009