Terry T. Turner, Ph.D.
Professor of Urology and Cell Biology
Research Focus: Pathology of the Testis and Epididymis
The tubules of the male reproductive tract provide a specialized microenvironment for the development, maturation, and storage of spermatozoa. The function of these tubules is fundamental to male fertility. Our laboratory is interested in the regulation of the environment in which sperm develop and mature; that is, the microenvironments within the tubules of the testis and the epididymis. We investigate the characteristics of the intraluminal environment, the epithelia which produce it, and the biological mechanisms which regulate it under normal and pathological condition.
Our studies in the testis have recently focused on the consequences of oxidative stress induced by the clinical condition known as testicular torsion. This induces an ischemia/ reperfusion (IR) injury to the testis and results in germ cell apoptosis (Fig. 1).
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Figure 1. Germ cell apoptosis is detectable in the control mouse testis (left panel, arrow) but is significantly increased 24 hrs after repair of a torsion that induced a 2 hr period of testicular ischemia (right panel, arrows). |
Currently, we are investigating the molecular pathway to germ cell apoptosis after IR injury to the testis using a variety of cell and molecular techniques.
Our studies of the epididymis focus on the regulation of the epididymal epithelium. The mammalian epididymis is segmented with regard to both morphology and function (Fig. 2).
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Figure 2. The anatomical and functional segmentation of the epididymis is illustrated in this whole-mount image of the mouse epididymis after partial blunt dissection of the segments and staining for the presence of b-galactosidase (blue) in the tubule of the segments. |
Gene expression and protein presence in the epithelium is commonly regulated in a segment-specific manner and we are interested in the mechanism of this phenomenon. Currently, we are investigating the possibility that genes well known in development (e.g. hox, sonic hedgehog) continue to play a role in the segmented function of the adult epididymis.
Recent Sample References
Johnston, D. S., Jelinsky, S. A., Bang, H. J., DiCandeloro, P.,
Turner T. T., Bang, H. J., Attipoe, S. A.,
Zheng, S., Turner, T. T. and Lysiak, J. L. (2006) Caspase 2 activity contributes to the initial wave of germ cell apoptois during the first round of spermatogenesis. Biol Reprod. (in press).