Angiotensin-converting enzyme and other peptidolytic enzymes in human semen and relations to its spermatologic parameters

• Published in: Andrologia Vol. 23; no. 2; p. 185
• Main Authors: Siems, W E, Heder, G, Hilse, H, Baeger, I, Engel, S, Jentzsch, K D
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Germany 01-03-1991
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Humans; Infertility, Male - enzymology; Isoenzymes - metabolism; Male; Metalloendopeptidases - metabolism; Molecular Sequence Data; Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A - metabolism; Semen - enzymology; Sperm Count; Sperm Motility; Spermatozoa - cytology; Spermatozoa - enzymology; Spermatozoa - physiology; Zinc - pharmacology
• ISSN: 0303-4569
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1439-0272.1991.tb02533.x

Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and other enzymes of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) occur in human semen in high activities. In contrast to bull ejaculates, not all zinc-dependent metallopeptidases are found to be in close correlation to the microscopically determined semen parameters; such a relationship was established only partly for the ACE. On the other hand, the RAS-dependent spermatozoa-bound enzymes, inclusive ACE, uniformly show negative correlations to the spermatologic parameters of human semen. These results, for the first time, point to different functions of the sperm-cell-bound (testicular) and of the seminal plasma (pulmonary) ACE activities.