SPA17 explained

Sperm surface protein Sp17 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the SPA17 gene.^{[1] [2]}

This gene encodes a protein present at the cell surface. Studies in rabbits suggest that in sperm the protein is involved in fertilization by binding to the zona pellucida of the oocyte. Other studies in rabbits suggest that it is also involved in additional cell-cell adhesion functions such as immune cell migration and metastasis.

Further reading

• Book: McLeskey SB, Dowds C, Carballada R, etal . Molecules involved in mammalian sperm-egg interaction . Int. Rev. Cytol. . 177 . 57–113 . 1997 . 9378618 . 10.1016/S0074-7696(08)62231-7 . International Review of Cytology . 9780123645814 .
• Richardson RT, Yamasaki N, O'Rand MG . Sequence of a rabbit sperm zona pellucida binding protein and localization during the acrosome reaction . Dev. Biol. . 165 . 2 . 688–701 . 1994 . 7525387 . 10.1006/dbio.1994.1285 .
• Kong M, Richardson RT, Widgren EE, O'Rand MG . Sequence and localization of the mouse sperm autoantigenic protein, Sp17 . Biol. Reprod. . 53 . 3 . 579–90 . 1995 . 7578682 . 10.1095/biolreprod53.3.579 . free .
• Fujita A, Nakamura K, Kato T, etal . Ropporin, a sperm-specific binding protein of rhophilin, that is localized in the fibrous sheath of sperm flagella . J. Cell Sci. . 113 . 1. 103–12 . 2000 . 10.1242/jcs.113.1.103 . 10591629 . 2433/181273 . free .
• Wen Y, Richardson RT, Widgren EE, O'Rand MG . Characterization of Sp17: a ubiquitous three domain protein that binds heparin . Biochem. J. . 357 . Pt 1 . 25–31 . 2001 . 11415432 . 10.1042/0264-6021:3570025 . 1221924 .
• De Jong A, Buchli R, Robbins D . Characterization of sperm protein 17 in human somatic and neoplastic tissue . Cancer Lett. . 186 . 2 . 201–9 . 2003 . 12213290 . 10.1016/S0304-3835(02)00350-6 .
• Buchli R, De Jong A, Robbins DL . Genomic organization of an intron-containing sperm protein 17 gene (Sp17-1) and an intronless pseudogene (Sp17-2) in humans: a new model . Biochim. Biophys. Acta . 1578 . 1–3 . 29–42 . 2002 . 12393185 . 10.1016/S0167-4781(02)00478-5.
• Strausberg RL, Feingold EA, Grouse LH, etal . Generation and initial analysis of more than 15,000 full-length human and mouse cDNA sequences . Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. . 99 . 26 . 16899–903 . 2003 . 12477932 . 10.1073/pnas.242603899 . 139241 . 2002PNAS...9916899M . free .
• Frayne J, Hall L . A re-evaluation of sperm protein 17 (Sp17) indicates a regulatory role in an A-kinase anchoring protein complex, rather than a unique role in sperm-zona pellucida binding . Reproduction . 124 . 6 . 767–74 . 2003 . 12530914 . 10.1530/rep.0.1240767 . free .
• Takeoka Y, Kenny TP, Yago H, etal . Developmental considerations of sperm protein 17 gene expression in rheumatoid arthritis synoviocytes . Dev. Immunol. . 9 . 2 . 97–102 . 2004 . 12739786 . 10.1080/1044667021000095186 . 2276097 .
• Chiriva-Internati M, Wang Z, Pochopien S, etal . Identification of a sperm protein 17 CTL epitope restricted by HLA-A1 . Int. J. Cancer . 107 . 5 . 863–5 . 2004 . 14566839 . 10.1002/ijc.11486 . 30452400 .
• Straughn JM, Shaw DR, Guerrero A, etal . Expression of sperm protein 17 (Sp17) in ovarian cancer . Int. J. Cancer . 108 . 6 . 805–11 . 2004 . 14712480 . 10.1002/ijc.11617 . 20294805 . free .
• Lea IA, Widgren EE, O'Rand MG . Association of sperm protein 17 with A-kinase anchoring protein 3 in flagella . Reprod. Biol. Endocrinol. . 2 . 57 . 2004 . 15257753 . 10.1186/1477-7827-2-57 . 484205 . free .
• Wang Z, Zhang Y, Ramsahoye B, etal . Sp17 gene expression in myeloma cells is regulated by promoter methylation . Br. J. Cancer . 91 . 8 . 1597–603 . 2004 . 15381930 . 10.1038/sj.bjc.6602160 . 2409933 .
• Gerhard DS, Wagner L, Feingold EA, etal . The status, quality, and expansion of the NIH full-length cDNA project: the Mammalian Gene Collection (MGC) . Genome Res. . 14 . 10B . 2121–7 . 2004 . 15489334 . 10.1101/gr.2596504 . 528928 .
• Gupta G, Sharma R, Chattopadhyay TK, etal . Clinical significance of sperm protein 17 expression and immunogenicity in esophageal cancer . Int. J. Cancer . 120 . 8 . 1739–47 . 2007 . 17230514 . 10.1002/ijc.22463 . 31927317 . free .

Notes and References

1. Lea IA, Richardson RT, Widgren EE, O'Rand MG . Cloning and sequencing of cDNAs encoding the human sperm protein, Sp17 . Biochim Biophys Acta . 1307 . 3 . 263–6 . Aug 1996 . 8688458 . 10.1016/0167-4781(96)00077-2.
2. Web site: Entrez Gene: SPA17 sperm autoantigenic protein 17.