[C.elegansII] Mutation defined by hcDf1, hDf13; hermaphrodite brood size 3, abnormal spermatogenesis with ribosomes attaching to fibrous body-membranous organelle. Cloned: 0.56 kb transcript, encodes 142 aa novel predicted protein, highly charged, Ser and Thr rich. [L'Hernault et al. 1993; SL]
spe-17 is predicted to encode a hydrophilic serine/threonine rich protein with no significant homology to any known protein; spe-17 is required for the proper development of spermatids into sperm during spermatogenesis and thus for fertility; specifically, spe-17 is required for the correct partitioning of organelles and sperm components into specialized Golgi-derived fibrous body-membranous organelle (FB-MO) complexes during spermatid formation.