Purpose: In general, men are less likely to seek health care than women. Infertility is a global disease that afflicts approximately 15% of reproductive age couples and the male contributes to 40% of the diagnosable cause. Remarkably, no large or multi-national population data exist regarding men's perceptions about their infertility.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFInositol monophosphatase (IMPA) is responsible for the synthesis of inositol, a polyol that can function as an intracellular osmolyte helping re-establish cell volume when exposed to hypertonic environments. Some epithelial tissues in euryhaline teleosts such as the eel and tilapia encounter considerable hyperosmotic challenge when fish move from freshwater (FW) to seawater (SW) environments; however, the roles played by organic osmolytes, such as inositol, have yet to be determined. Syntenic analysis has indicated that, as a result of whole genome- and tandem-duplication events, up to six IMPA isoforms can exist within teleost genomes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPhosphatidylinositol-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC) enzymes comprise a small family of receptor-regulated phosphodiesterases that control many cellular processes by the regulation of cytosolic calcium and/or the activity of several protein kinases. To date, six distinct classes of PI-PLC are known to exist in mammals. Here we characterise a seventh class of PI-PLC, which contains only the catalytic X domain in its structure, termed phospholipase C X-domain containing protein (PLCXD).
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