Orchestration of occludins, claudins, catenins and cadherins as players involved in maintenance of the blood-epididymal barrier in animals and humans

Although spermatozoa are formed during spermatogenesis in the testis, testicular spermatozoa are immature and cannot swim or fertilize. These critical spermatozoal functions are acquired in the epididymis where a specific luminal environment is created by the blood-epididymal barrier; proteins secreted by epididymal principal cells bind to maturing spermatozoa and regulate the maturational process of the spermatozoa. In the epididymis, epithelial cell-cell interactions are mediated by adhering junctions, necessary for cell adhesion, and by tight junctions, which form the blood-epididymal barrier. The regulation of these cellular junctions is thought to represent a key determinant in the process of sperm maturation within the epididymis. Tight junctions between adjacent principal cells permit the formation of a specific microenvironment in the lumen of the epididymis that is essential for sperm maturation. Although we have made significant progress in understanding epididymal function and the blood-epididymal barrier, using animal models, there is limited information on the human epididymis. If we are to understand the normal and pathological conditions attributable to human epididymal function, we must clearly establish the physiological, cellular and molecular regulation of the human epididymis, develop tools to characterize these functions and develop clinical strategies that will use epididymal functions to improve treatment of infertility. （Asian J Androl 2007 July; 9： 463- 475）

Prevalence of Metabolic Syndrome in HIV-Infected Cameroonian Patients

Aims: Metabolic complications related to antiretroviral therapy are rarely investigated among HIV-infected patients in Cameroon. The study reports the prevalence of metabolic syndrome and its individual components among HIV-infected Cameroonians. Materials and Methods: We conducted a prospective, cross-sectional study of the prevalence of metabolic syndrome among 492 patients (338 women, 117 men;age range 20 years) recruited at a reference centre, the day hospital, Central Hospital in Yaounde between September 2009 and September 2010. Metabolic syndrome was defined according to IDF (International Diabetes Federation) and NCEP ATP III (National Cholesterol Education Program Adult Treatment Panel III) criteria relative to obesity, glycemic, lipid, arterial blood pressure parameters. Results: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 32.8% according to IDF and 30.7% by NCEP (p = 0.0001). The prevalences of individual components according to IDF and NCEP were as follows: abdominal obesity (40.5%;26.9% respectively), hypertriglyceridemia (55.5%), low HDL cholesterol (42.5%), systolic hypertension (38.2%) diastolic hypertension (28.5%), hyperglycemia (31.2%;1.3% p = 0.0001). The prevalence of metabolic syndrome was 36% in patients under HAART, 23.4% in naive, (p = 0.0001). Conclusion: The prevalence of metabolic syndrome depends on the presence and the type of HAART used, the definition and the gender.