A 28-year-old man sees his physician on a regular basis because he has suffered from bronchiectasis, chronic sinusitis, rhinitis, and secretory otitis media since childhood. He is currently being evaluated for infertility because he and his wife have been unable to conceive. His wife has been evaluated, and no abnormalities were found. The volume of his ejaculate and his sperm count are within reference ranges. Given his history and current findings, his infertility could best be explained by defective or absent production of which of the following cell structures?
A) Golgi complex
B) microtubules
C) mitochondria
D) peroxisomes
E) ribosomes

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The patient's symptoms and infertility are suggestive of Kartagener syndrome, a type of primary ciliary dyskinesia, which is caused by defects in the microtubules that make up cilia and flagella. This affects respiratory cilia and sperm motility, leading to the symptoms described.  Microtubules are filamentous intracellular structures that are responsible for various kinds of movements in all eukaryotic cells. Microtubules are involved in nuclear and cell division, organization of intracellular structures, and intracellular transport, as well as ciliary motility. The symptoms observed in this individual, bronchiectasis, sinusitis, rhinitis, and secretory otitis media are all the result of defective ciliary function.

A 28-Year-Old Man Sees His Physician on a Regular Basis