An elevated odds ratio for low IQ has been found for cryptorchid boys. Furthermore, poor school performance has been observed in cryptorchid boys with impaired mini-puberty.
Gene expression analysis, qPCR and immunohistology wereperformed on testicular biopsies from 7 boys who under-went orchiopexy and had testicular histology typical of ahigh risk of infertility (HIR). The results were compared with12 biopsies from cryptorchid boys with a low risk for develop-ing infertility. The following genes associated with mentalretardation were identically expressed: GDI1, OPHN1, PAK3,ARHGEF6, IL1RAPL, ACSL4, MECP2, RPS6KA3, ARX, and ATRX.However, boys in the HIR group had low or no expression ofEGR4, FMR2 (AFF2) and VCX3A. In conclusion, impaired ex-pression of genes known to encode proteins involved in sig-naling pathways that regulate cytoskeletal organization, syn-aptic vesicle transport and the establishment of connectionsbetween neuronal cells may contribute to reduced intellec-tual and cognitive functioning in infertile cryptorchid males.
Download complete article
