Testis-specific isozyme of angiotensin converting enzyme (tACE) as a fertility marker in bulls

即使是牛的繁殖率的适度提高也会大大提高生产力。因此，研究提高奶牛的繁殖效率对奶牛行业具有重要意义。在被分类为满意（基于传统精液评估）的冷冻精液样本中，生育能力变化在20-25%之间，这意味着商业人工智能中心保存的精英公牛精子在结构和功能上存在亚微观差异。了解这些精子受精能力变化的分子基础将在乳制品行业有许多应用，因为它将使我们能够：1)将精子功能变化的遗传基础纳入公牛选择模型，以便在尽可能早的年龄选择具有高生育力的公牛；2)确定公牛犊牛管理（如营养）的新策略，以调节调节生育的基因表达；3)确定生育能力的分子标记，这将使人工智能行业能够开发实验室测试，以精确记录冷冻精液的生育能力，并使其在全球市场上保持竞争力。我们实验室的重点是了解精子功能的分子基础。本研究的目的是研究睾丸特异性血管紧张素转换酶（tACE，一种精子膜蛋白）同工酶作为奶牛生育标志的潜力。我们期望这个与乳制品行业的合作项目将阐明tACE在公牛生育力中的作用，为学术界和工业界培养高素质的人才，并促进新型实验室分析的发展，以在尽可能早的年龄预测冷冻精液的生育力。我们的长期目标是产生关于精子功能分子调控的新知识，并将这些知识转化为公牛选择和冷冻精液评估的工业应用。

Even a modest increase in the reproductive rate in cattle substantially enhances productivity. Therefore, research to improve reproductive efficiency is important for the dairy industry. Fertility varies 20-25% among frozen semen samples classified as satisfactory (based on traditional semen evaluation), implying there are submicroscopic differences in the structure and function of sperm from elite bulls maintained in commercial AI centers. Understanding the molecular basis of these variations in the fertilizing ability of sperm will have numerous applications in the dairy industry, as it will enable us to: 1) incorporate the genetic basis of variations in sperm function into bull selection models to select bulls with high fertility at their earliest possible age; 2) determine novel strategies for bull calf management (for example, nutrition) for modulating the expression of genes regulating fertility; and 3) identify molecular markers for fertility which will enable AI industries to develop laboratory tests for precisely documenting fertility of frozen semen and enable them to remain competitive in the global market. Our laboratory is focused on understanding the molecular basis of sperm function. The objective of this proposal is to investigate the potential of a testis-specific isozyme of Angiotensin Converting Enzyme (tACE; a sperm membrane protein) as a fertility marker in dairy bulls. We expect that this collaborative project with dairy industries will elucidate the role of tACE in bull fertility, train highly qualified individual for academia and industry, and facilitate development of novel laboratory assays for predicting fertility of frozen semen at their earliest possible age. Our long-term goal is to generate new knowledge regarding molecular regulation of sperm function and translate this knowledge to applications at the industry level for bull selection and evaluation of frozen semen.