Amida predominantly expressed and developmentally regulated in rat testis.

Amida was first isolated from a rat hippocampal cDNA library as an Arc-associated protein. Previous studies showed that Amida is a nuclear protein and overexpression of Amida induces cell apoptosis. In this study, we found that Amida mRNA was expressed predominantly in rat testis by Northern blot analysis. During the development of testis, Amida mRNA was barely detectable until postnatal days 24 to 29 during which it increased to levels found in adults. However, Amida protein was not detected until postnatal day 32. Amida mRNA was found to be enriched in spermatocytes and less in round spermatids, but was undetectable in elongated spermatids by in situ hybridization. In addition, Amida protein was observed in the nucleus of spermatocytes and even in the elongated spermatids by immunohistochemistry. The development and cellular localization differences of Amida mRNA and protein implicates that Amida mRNA may undergo posttranscriptional regulation. Furthermore, Amida mRNA decreased significantly in the 8-day experimental cryptorchid testis when spermatogenesis was disrupted. Taken together, these data suggest that Amida is involved in spermatogenesis and may play an important role in development of testicular germ cells.