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Intraflagellar transport-associated CCDC92 is required for spermiogenesis and male fertility in mice
Yue Lu1 , Xirui Zi1 , Qian Lyu1 , Qingchao Li1 , Hanxiao Yin2 , Yinghao Wang1 , Qijun Chen1 , Bingkun Kang1 , Shanshan Nai1 , Jun Zhou1,2 , Huijie Zhao1,* , Ting Song1,*
1Center for Cell Structure and Function, Shandong Provincial Key Laboratory of Animal Resistance Biology, College of Life Sciences, Shandong Normal University, Jinan 250014, China
2State Key Laboratory of Medicinal Chemical Biology, Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, College of Life Sciences, Nankai University, Tianjin 300071, China
*Correspondence to:Ting Song , Email:623056@sdnu.edu.cn Huijie Zhao , Email:huijiezhao@sdnu.edu.cn
J Mol Cell Biol, Volume 17, Issue 5, May 2025, mjaf022,  https://doi.org/10.1093/jmcb/mjaf022
Keyword: CCDC92, male infertility, spermiogenesis, manchette, intraflagellar transport, microtubule inner proteins

The differentiation of a round spermatid into a streamlined sperm cell involves a series of remarkable morphological changes, such as sperm head shaping and flagellum formation. However, the underlying mechanism of spermatid shaping remains unclear. In this study, we find that CCDC92 deficiency in mice leads to severe abnormalities of the sperm head and flagellum and causes male infertility. Ultrastructural analyses of testicular elongating Ccdc92 knockout spermatids reveal severely deformed manchette structures. The manchette defects impair the subsequent sperm nucleus elongation and acrosome anchoring, resulting in misshapen rod-like nuclei and detached acrosomes. Molecularly, CCDC92 interacts with intraflagellar transport (IFT) complex components and colocalizes with IFT proteins at the manchette in developing spermatids. Quantitative proteomics further reveals the requirement of CCDC92 for proper flagellar distribution of axonemal microtubule inner proteins. Our findings demonstrate an essential role of CCDC92 in regulating spermatid shaping and provide novel insights into the pathology of male infertility.