Vitamin Spermatogenesis

Vitamin A is essential for spermatogenesis the retinoic acid may be required in maturation (i.e. differentiation) of spermatid into spermatozoa. This is important in male fertility. 

Reproduction Retinol and retinal are essential for normal repno duction, supporting spermatogenesis in the male and preventing fetal resorption in the female. Retinoic acid is inactive in maintain ing reproduction and in the visual cycle, but promotes growth and differentiation of epithelial cells thus, animals given vitamin A only as retinoic acid from birth are blind and sterile. 

Vitamin A is a necessary micronutrient in the diet for vision, growth, tissue differentiation, reproduction, and maintenance of the immune system. A deficiency of vitamin A affects reproduction in both male and female experimental animals. In the male, retinol is required for normal spermatogenesis in the female, the vitamin is necessary for both conception and normal development of the fetus. 

Urinary calculi are frequent concomitants of vitamin A deficiency. The epithelium of the urinary tract shares in the general pathological changes of all epithelial structures. Epithelial debris thus may provide the nidus around which a calculus is formed. Abnormalities of reproduction include impairment of spermatogenesis, degeneration of testes, abortion, resorption of fetuses, and production of malformed offspring. 

Vitamin A is an essential fat-soluble compound acquired from the diet. The parent form of vitamin A is all-iram-retinol. Vitamin A is needed to maintain normal vision, normal reproduction (including spermatogenesis, conception, and placenta formation), and normal cell differentiation (including bone remodeling, maintenance of differentiated epithelial linings and skin, em-... 

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin. Chemically it is identical with the alcohol retinol, whereas the corresponding vitamin A aldehyd is retinal and the acid derivative of vitamin A is retinoic acid. A sufficient supply of vitamin A is required for embryonic growth and differentiation, for reproduction, including spermatogenesis, oogenesis and placental development and for vision in the developping and the adult organism. 

Retinol, or vitamin A, is a necessary nutrient in all higher animals. It plays an important role in vision, in the maintenance of epithelial cell layers, in spermatogenesis, and in fetal development. Retinol must be obtained from... 

Vitamin A (retinol) (Fig. 7.12) and its metabolic oxidation products assume a critical physiological role in growth, development and differentiation of epithelial tissue, the maintenance of vision, and as well in spermatogenesis and the normal development of the placenta and the foetus. (allE)-Retinoic acid and (13Z)-retinoic acid are important medicaments for the treatment of acne and psoriasis the former has also demonstrated complete remission in most cases of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). 

The reproductive system requires a vitamin A-active substance for maintaining a normally differentiated epithelium, for other functions supportive of spermatogenesis in males (Palludan, 1966 Ahluwalia and Bieri, 1971 Thompson et al, 1964 Coward et al, 1969 Mitranond et al, 1979 Sobhon et al, 1979), and of a full gestation, embryonic development, and delivery in females (Thompson et al, 1964 Takahashi et al, 1975) it is also required for hatch-ability of the fertile eggs of fowl (Thompson et al, 1969). Retinoic acid can fulfill the role of epithelial maintenance, but retinol is required for the other functions noted. An exception appears to occur in the cockerel, in which retinoic acid is reported to maintain spermatogenesis (Thompson et al, 1969). 

Huang, H. F. Yang, C. S. et al. (1988). "Disruption of sustentacular (Sertoli) cell tight junctions and regression of spermatogenesis in vitamin-A-deficient rats." Acta Anat (Basel) 133(1), 10-5. 

Morales, A. Cavicchia, J. C. (2002). "Spermatogenesis and blood-testis barrier in rats after long-term Vitamin A deprivation." Tissue Cell, 34(5), 349-55. 

---