{"type": "root", "children": [{"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nMammalian spermatogenesis is a highly orchestrated process culminating in spermiogenesis—the transformation of round spermatids into streamlined, motile spermatozoa. Studies have shown that the gene LINC01924 (previously characterized as Iqcg) is robustly expressed during this phase and is specifically localized to the manchette of developing spermatids, a structure thought to be critical for shaping the sperm head and assembling the tail. This spatial distribution strongly suggests that LINC01924 plays a pivotal role in coordinating the cytoskeletal rearrangements necessary for proper sperm morphogenesis."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "1"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ""}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nFunctional disruption of LINC01924 results in dramatic defects in spermiogenesis. In mouse models, knockout of this gene leads to the formation of spermatozoa with severely disorganized flagella, where the characteristic “9+2” axonemal structure is largely absent, rendering the sperm immotile and leading to male infertility. Mechanistically, LINC01924 interacts with calmodulin in a calcium-dependent manner, suggesting that it may modulate localized calcium signaling pathways that in turn regulate the remodeling of the actin cytoskeleton during sperm tail formation."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "2"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ""}]}, {"type": "t", "text": "\n\n"}, {"type": "p", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "\nIn addition, the evolutionary conservation of LINC01924/Iqcg—from green algae and mollusks to mammals—underscores its essential, conserved role in flagellar assembly and function. The presence of orthologs in such diverse species indicates that regulation of flagellar and ciliary structures by LINC01924 is a fundamental biological process across eukaryotes."}, {"type": "fg", "children": [{"type": "fg_f", "ref": "2"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": ""}]}, {"type": "rg", "children": [{"type": "r", "ref": 1, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Ren-Ke Li, Jue-Ling Tan, Li-Ting Chen, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Iqcg is essential for sperm flagellum formation in mice."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "PLoS One (2014)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1371/journal.pone.0098053"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0098053"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "24849454"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24849454"}]}, {"type": "r", "ref": 2, "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "Tanya P Harris, Kerry J Schimenti, Robert J Munroe, et al. "}, {"type": "b", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "IQ motif-containing G (Iqcg) is required for mouse spermiogenesis."}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " "}, {"type": "i", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "G3 (Bethesda) (2014)"}]}, {"type": "t", "text": " DOI: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "10.1534/g3.113.009563"}], "href": "https://doi.org/10.1534/g3.113.009563"}, {"type": "t", "text": " PMID: "}, {"type": "a", "children": [{"type": "t", "text": "24362311"}], "href": "https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24362311"}]}]}]}