Hyperkeratotic hand eczema: Eczema or not?

Background: Hyperkeratotic hand eczema (HHE) is a typical clinical hand eczema subtype with a largely unknown pathophysiology.

Objective: To investigate histopathology, expression of keratins (K), epidermal barrier proteins, and adhesion molecules in HHE.

Methods: Palmar skin biopsies (lesional and perilesional) were obtained from seven HHE patients and two healthy controls.

Preantral follicular atresia occurs mainly through autophagy, while antral follicles degenerate mostly through apoptosis.

There is a general agreement that granulosa cell apoptosis is the cause of antral follicle attrition. Less clear is whether this pathway is also activated in case of preantral follicle degeneration, as several reports mention that the incidence of granulosa cell apoptosis in preantral follicles is negligible. Our objective is therefore to determine which cell-death pathways are involved in preantral and antral follicular degeneration.

Distinct prophase arrest mechanisms in human male meiosis.

To prevent chromosomal aberrations being transmitted to the offspring, strict meiotic checkpoints are in place to remove aberrant spermatocytes. However, in about 1% of males these checkpoints cause complete meiotic arrest leading to azoospermia and subsequent infertility. Here, we unravel two clearly distinct meiotic arrest mechanisms that occur during prophase of human male meiosis.

Unraveling transcriptome dynamics in human spermatogenesis.

Spermatogenesis is a dynamic developmental process that includes stem cell proliferation and differentiation, meiotic cell divisions and extreme chromatin condensation. Although studied in mice, the molecular control of human spermatogenesis is largely unknown. Here, we developed a protocol that enables next-generation sequencing of RNA obtained from pools of 500 individually laser-capture microdissected cells of specific germ cell subtypes from fixed human testis samples.

Spermatogonial stem cell autotransplantation and germline genomic editing: a future cure for spermatogenic failure and prevention of transmission of genomic diseases.

Background: Subfertility affects approximately 15% of all couples, and a severe male factor is identified in 17% of these couples. While the etiology of a severe male factor remains largely unknown, prior gonadotoxic treatment and genomic aberrations have been associated with this type of subfertility. Couples with a severe male factor can resort to ICSI, with either ejaculated spermatozoa (in case of oligozoospermia) or surgically retrieved testicular spermatozoa (in case of azoospermia) to generate their own biological children.

Molecular control of rodent spermatogenesis.

Spermatogenesis is a complex developmental process that ultimately generates mature spermatozoa. This process involves a phase of proliferative expansion, meiosis, and cytodifferentiation. Mouse models have been widely used to study spermatogenesis and have revealed many genes and molecular mechanisms that are crucial in this process.