Sertoli cells are the only somatic cells in the seminiferous epithelium which directly contact with germ cells. Sertoli cells exhibit polarized alignment at the basal membrane of seminiferous tubules to maintain the microenvironment for growth and development of germ cells, and therefore play a crucial role in spermatogenesis. Androgens exert their action through androgen receptor (AR) and AR signalling in the testis is essential for maintenance of spermatogonial numbers, blood–testis barrier integrity, completion of meiosis, adhesion of spermatids and spermiation. In the present study, we demonstrated that AR gene could promote the proliferation of immature porcine Sertoli cells (ST cells) and the cell cycle procession, and accelerate the transition from G1 phase into S phase in ST cells. Meanwhile, miR‐124a could affect the proliferation and cell cycle procession of ST cells by targeting 3′‐UTR of AR gene. Furthermore, AR bound to the RNF4 via AR DNA‐binding domain (DBD) and we verified that RNF4 was necessary for AR to regulate the growth of ST cells. Above all, this study suggests that AR regulates ST cell growth via binding to RNF4 and miR‐124a, which may help us to further understand the function of AR in spermatogenesis.

中文翻译：

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AR通过与RNF4和miR-124a结合调节猪未成熟支持细胞的生长

支持细胞是生精上皮中唯一与生殖细胞直接接触的体细胞。支持细胞在生精小管基底膜处呈现极化排列，以维持生殖细胞生长和发育的微环境，因此在精子发生中起着至关重要的作用。雄激素通过雄激素受体 (AR) 发挥作用，睾丸中的 AR 信号传导对于维持精原细胞数量、血睾屏障完整性、减数分裂完成、精子细胞粘附和精子形成至关重要。在本研究中，我们证明了AR基因可以促进未成熟猪支持细胞（ST细胞）的增殖和细胞周期进程，加速ST细胞从G1期向S期的转变。同时，miR-124a可以通过靶向AR基因的3'-UTR影响ST细胞的增殖和细胞周期进程。此外，AR 通过 AR DNA 结合域 (DBD) 与 RNF4 结合，我们证实 RNF4 是 AR 调节 ST 细胞生长所必需的。最重要的是，这项研究表明 AR 通过与 RNF4 和 miR-124a 结合来调节 ST 细胞生长，这可能有助于我们进一步了解 AR 在精子发生中的功能。