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The Functional Significance of FSH in Spermatogenesis and the Control of Its Secretion in Male Primates

Departments of Cell Biology and Physiology (T.M.P.) and Medicine (G.R.M.), University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261

Correspondence: Address all correspondence and requests for reprints to: Tony M. Plant, Ph.D., Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of Pittsburgh, S-828A Scaife Hall, 3500 Terrace Street, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261. E-mail: plant1+{at}pitt.edu

The aim of this review is to provide an integrative analysis of the role of FSH in the control of testicular function in higher primates, including man. Attention is focused on the action of FSH during neonatal development, puberty, and adulthood. Whether FSH is the major determinant of the adult complement of Sertoli cells and whether FSH is obligatory for the initiation, maintenance, and restoration of spermatogenesis is evaluated. The mechanism whereby the circulating concentration of FSH regulates spermatogonial proliferation to dictate the sperm production rate under physiological conditions in the adult is discussed in detail. Inhibin B is the major component of the testicular negative feedback signal governing FSHß gene expression and FSH secretion, and the evidence for this view is presented. The review concludes with the presentation of a model for the operation of the FSH-inhibin B feedback control system regulating sperm production postpubertally in monkey and man, and with speculation on issues of clinical interest.

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