Table 1.
Gene knockout or deletion strategies that impact the intraluminal environment of the mouse epididymis.
| Gene knockout | Fertility phenotype | Changes to epididymal environment | References (PMID) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sed1 | Infertile | Hypo-osmotic and alkaline epididymal fluid, disrupted fluid reabsorption, increased intracellular vesicles | 20122713 |
| Esr1 | Infertile | Hypo-osmotic fluid | 20130266 |
| C-ros | Infertile | Defective initial segment development, increased luminal pH | 10645273, 15095336 |
| Dicer1 | Subfertile | Imbalanced lipid homeostasis in proximal segments. Dedifferentiation of the epithelium and imbalance in sex steroid signaling | 25366345, 22701646 |
| Rlx | Subfertile | Delayed maturation and growth associated with increased collagen deposition | 15956703 |
| He6 | Infertile | Reduced in size and dysregulation of fluid reabsorption | 15367682 |
| Lur (testosterone treatment) | Subfertile | Inflammation in epididymis | 15514086 |
| Erα | Infertile | Disruption in Na+ reabsorption and passive water transport, abnormal epithelial ultrastructure | 11698654 |
| Nhe3 | Infertile | Disruption in Na+ reabsorption and passive water transport | 11698654 |
| Lxr | Infertile | Abnormal accumulation neutral lipids | 15525595 |
| Apoer2 | Infertile | Dysfunction of clusterin and PHGPx protein impacting sperm maturation | 12695510 |
| Fsh-r | Subfertile | Smaller epithelial surface area in caput and corpus segments | 15973687 |
| Gpx5 | Higher incidence of miscarriages and developmental defects | Excess of reactive oxygen species in the cauda segment leading to oxidative damage of spermatozoa | 19546506 |
| Hoxa10Hoxa11 | SubfertileInfertile | Epididymis characterized by homeotic transformationEpididymis characterized by homeotic transformation | 87877437789268 |
| Hexa | Infertile (age dependent) | Inability to degrade endocytosed substrates | 12617783 |
| Tmf | Infertile | Epithelial apoptosis and sperm stasis in the cauda segment | 23000399 |
| Trpv6 | Subfertile | Defects in epididymal Ca2+ absorption | 22427671 |
| Slc9a3 | Infertile | Abnormally abundant secretions and calcification in the lumen | 28384194 |