关键词: 精子, RNA, 精子成熟, 精子发生, 受精, 胚胎发育, 后成说, 遗传

Abstract: The quantity of mammalian sperm RNAs is little,  but the kind is much. With the development of biotechnology, the function and mechanism of some sperm RNAs have been illustrated. In spermiogenesis, miRNAs and mRNA are closely related to the chromosome pycnosis, flagellum structure and motility; while piRNAs have a definite but limited function on the retrotransposon activity and genome stability. During fertilization and early embryonic development, mRNA plays a role in regulating cellular energy pathways and affecting gametogenesis. The deficiency of miRNAs or endo-siRNAs could lead to the abnormal early embryonic development. Several pri-mir-RNAs transported as miRNA precursors and activated after fertilization regulate the pluripotency of embryonic stem cells. LncRNAs participats in the regulation of gene expression and silence. Sperm RNAs as a stable trans-generation bio-marker (such as tsRNAs, miRNAs and piRNAs) can remodel the acquired traits, and transmit them steadily to offspring, via modifying the higher-order structures of genetic materials.

Key words: Spermatozoa, RNA, Sperm maturation, Spermiogenesis, Fertilization, Embryonic development, Epigenesis, genetic