Inhibition of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase in boar spermatozoa by bromohydroxypropanone

In the presence of 3-bromo-1-hydroxypropanone (BOP), cauda epididymal sperm obtained from mature boars produced a carbonyl compound which is assumed to be (S)-3-bromolactaldehyde. Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase was rapidly inhibited which resulted in the accumulation of dihydroxyacetone phosphate and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate, and no accumulation of lactate when fructose was the substrate. The energy charge potential of the cells declined in the presence of BOP when either fructose or glycerol were substrates. It is suggested that BOP is transformed into (S)-3-bromolactaldehyde, which is the actual inhibitor of glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase, thus demonstrating BOP to be the first brominated chemical to have an anti-glycolytic action on mature sperm in vitro.