Infertility: New Avenues to Understand the Harmful Effects of Chemotherapy

Immunostaining of a mouse testicle section, with ( in red ) the undifferentiated germ cells and ( in green ) the GFP protein reflecting TGR5 receptor expression in this study model. ©David Volle/Inserm Infertility is a public health problem affecting millions of couples in France. Among the possible causes, chemotherapy has been singled out as having particularly harmful effects on the fertility of both women and men. In order to better prevent and restore fertility in cancer survivors, understanding the mechanisms behind these negative effects is a priority. In a new study, researchers from Inserm, CNRS and Université Clermont Auvergne investigated a receptor found on male germ cells that produce gametes, their aim being to find out more about its role in chemotherapy-related infertility. Their findings, published in Advanced Science , pave the way for a better understanding of male infertility and the development of treatments to reduce the risk of sterility from chemotherapy. Around 3.3 million people in France are directly affected by infertility.