Frontiers in Bioscience-Landmark (FBL) is published by IMR Press from Volume 26 Issue 5 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.
Prostasomes, post-testicular sperm maturation and fertility
Prostasomes are known as extracellular organelles originating from the epithelial cells of the prostate and detected in its secretions where they are mixed with sperm cells after ejaculation. They were first described in men but are also present in the semen of all mammals studied. Since their characterization by Gunnar Ronquist in the late 1970’s studies have focused on different aspects which primarily include their molecular composition and structure, and secondly their ability to interact or even fuse with cells, particularly spermatozoa. They have the ability to bring molecules such as lipids or proteins to spermatozoa during their journey to the oocyte, and their role thus seem to be a sort of a “reservoir” that sperm may use depending on the surrounding conditions. Other properties have been suggested but this review will focus on the properties, acquired by sperm cells via prostasomes, that may influence fertility outcome.