新一期英国《自然》杂志刊登报告说，日本研究人员成功在试管中培育出实验鼠的精子，可以使雌性实验鼠受孕并产下后代，这一成果将有助于研究和治疗男性不育等病症。
日本横滨市立大学等机构研究人员报告说，他们试图在试管中培养来自年幼雄性实验鼠的睾丸组织，在多次尝试之后，最终找到合适的培养介质，睾丸组织可以在其中生长并最终形成精子。随后的实验显示，这些精子可以通过人工授精技术使雌性实验鼠受孕。目前，受孕的雌性实验鼠已产下12只小鼠。
此前已有许多人工培育哺乳动物精子的相关研究，但这些研究不是没有培育出完整的精子，就是没有证明这些精子具有正常的生成后代的能力。英国纽卡斯尔大学研究人员曾在2009年报告说，他们利用胚胎干细胞在试管中培育出人类精子，但论文后来被撤销。
本次研究使用的是年幼雄性实验鼠的睾丸组织，并且实验证实将这些组织冷冻一段时间后也可以成功培育出精子。因此，如果能将这项技术应用于人类，可以帮助那些在年幼时因病丧失生育功能的男孩保存睾丸组织，在他们成年后利用冷冻保存的组织来培育自己的精子并用于生育后代。
此外，这项研究也有助于理解精子的生成过程，从而帮助寻找更多的治疗男性不育的方法。相关技术也许还可以用于帮助一些珍稀动物的繁衍。（生物谷Bioon.com）
生物谷推荐原文出处：
Nature doi:10.1038/nature09850
In vitro production of functional sperm in cultured neonatal mouse testes
Takuya Sato,1 Kumiko Katagiri,1 Ayako Gohbara,1 Kimiko Inoue,2 Narumi Ogonuki,2 Atsuo Ogura,2 Yoshinobu Kubota1 & Takehiko Ogawa1, 3
Spermatogenesis is one of the most complex and longest processes of sequential cell proliferation and differentiation in the body, taking more than a month from spermatogonial stem cells, through meiosis, to sperm formation1, 2. The whole process, therefore, has never been reproduced in vitro in mammals3, 4, 5, nor in any other species with a very few exceptions in some particular types of fish6, 7. Here we show that neonatal mouse testes which contain only gonocytes or primitive spermatogonia as germ cells can produce spermatids and sperm in vitro with serum-free culture media. Spermatogenesis was maintained over 2?months in tissue fragments positioned at the gas–liquid interphase. The obtained spermatids and sperm resulted in healthy and reproductively competent offspring through microinsemination. In addition, neonatal testis tissues were cryopreserved and, after thawing, showed complete spermatogenesis in vitro. Our organ culture method could be applicable through further refinements to a variety of mammalian species, which will serve as a platform for future clinical application as well as mechanistic understanding of spermatogenesis.
