Abstract
Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play crucial roles in diverse mammalian physiological processes, yet their functions in spermatogenesis remain largely underexplored. Here, we identify a unique class of conserved haploid spermatid-associated lncRNAs (cHS-LncRNAs) defined by sequence conservation, testis-restricted expression, and elevated levels in haploid spermatids. Among these, testis-specific conserved lncRNA 1 (Tscl1) is the most highly expressed in round spermatids. Tscl1-null male mice exhibit reduced sperm motility, disorganized mitochondrial sheaths, abnormal fatty acid metabolism, and complete infertility. Mechanistically, Tscl1 directly binds PIWIL1 and HuR via its 5′ stem-loop and multiple AU-rich elements, respectively. This interaction promotes assembly of a PIWIL1/eIF3f/HuR/eIF4G3 complex that enhances translation of fatty-acid-metabolism-related mRNAs within the chromatoid body. Notably, TSCL1 variants disrupting the PIWIL1-binding region are significantly enriched in patients with non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) compared to fertile controls. Collectively, our findings uncover a critical role for Tscl1 in modulating translation during spermiogenesis and implicate TSCL1 as a potential pathogenic locus in human male infertility.
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Data availability
The lncRNA-seq and Ribo-seq data generated in this study have been deposited in the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) with accession codes GSE284142 and GSE284143, respectively. All raw data underlying this article will be shared on reasonable request to the corresponding author.
Code availability
The code underlying this article will be shared on reasonable request to the corresponding author.
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Acknowledgements
This work was funded by grants from the National Key Research & Development (R&D) Program of China (2021YFC2700600, 2022YFC2702500) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32300720).
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ZH and YG initiated, conceived, and supervised the study. ZH and SL designed the experimental plan. SL, CL, and GT contributed to the Sanger sequencing analysis of clinical NOA patients. GY, SL, and WY generated Tscl1−/− mice. GT, HC, and SZ performed most of the genotyping experiments. SL and CL performed reproductive phenotype analysis. YL, HC, and SZ performed RNA pulldown. SL and BY contributed to IP-related experiments. SL and SZ contributed to metabolism-related experiments. YL, XX, and SZ performed the sorting of spermatogenic cells. SL, SZ, and GT performed sucrose gradient analyses and the electrophoretic mobility shift assay in vitro. SL and YZ contributed to data analysis. GY, SL, and YL contributed to the functional studies on the small peptide. GY, SL, and SZ contributed to Lentivirus construction and intratesticular microinjection experiments. SL, GY, and ZB prepared and wrote the manuscript with input from everyone.
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Animal work performed in this study was approved by the Institution of Animal Care and Use Committee of Nanjing Medical University (Approval No. IACUC-1601117). All methods and experimental protocols on human participants were carried out in compliance with the Declaration of Helsinki and approved by the relevant review of the Ethics Committee of Nanjing Medical University No. 363 (2023). Written informed consent was obtained from all participants.
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Lu, S., Li, Y., Li, C. et al. Male specific conserved LncRNA TSCL1 regulated target mRNA translation by interaction with PIWIL1. Cell Death Differ (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41418-025-01583-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41418-025-01583-8