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While SIRT1 is a key regulator of DNA damage response and cellular senescence in other contexts, its role in SSCs is still poorly understood. In this study, human testicular single-cell RNA sequencing datasets were reanalyzed to characterize SSC transcriptional programs in non-obstructive azoospermia (NOA) patients. Clinical validation was performed on testicular sections from obstructive azoospermia controls and NOA patients. X-ray irradiation and hydroxyurea-based DNA damage models were applied to interrogate SSC DNA damage responses in vivo and in vitro. Immunofluorescence, western blotting, co-immunoprecipitation, growth and survival assays, flow cytometry, a GFP-based NHEJ reporter, and acetylation analyses were used to define SIRT1-associated pathways. Single-cell analysis revealed an overall attenuation of NHEJ-related signatures and reduced SIRT1 expression in SSCs from NOA compared with controls. In clinical specimens, confocal immunofluorescence confirmed a reduced SSC pool and decreased SIRT1 and 53BP1 signals within PLZF-positive SSCs, while KU70 levels were not significantly changed. In experimental models, acute DNA damage induced a rapid SIRT1 response in SSCs. Functional assays showed that SIRT1 supports SSC homeostasis by promoting proliferative capacity and influencing apoptosis and survival under hydroxyurea-induced DNA damage. Mechanistically, SIRT1 co-localized and physically interacted with KU70, with enhanced association under genotoxic stress. NHEJ reporter assays showed reduced repair efficiency following\n                    <jats:italic>Sirt1<\/jats:italic>\n                    knockdown. Moreover,\n                    <jats:italic>Sirt1<\/jats:italic>\n                    overexpression may down-regulate KU70 acetylation, indicating a deacetylation-dependent mechanism in NHEJ regulation. Collectively, these findings identify SIRT1 as a stress-responsive regulator of SSC genome maintenance that functionally cooperates with KU70 to support NHEJ-associated repair and limit DNA damage-driven SSC loss. The SIRT1\u2013KU70 axis represents a potential target to mitigate genotoxic injury\u2013associated germline stem cell attrition and preserve male fertility.\n                  <\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.1038\/s41419-026-08710-4","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,7]],"date-time":"2026-04-07T04:54:46Z","timestamp":1775537686000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/springer_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["SIRT1 mediates KU70 to maintain genomic stability in spermatogonial stem cells via the NHEJ repair pathway"],"prefix":"10.1038","volume":"17","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0002-1973-4365","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fang","family":"Zhou","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yanli","family":"Xiao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qiaorui","family":"Yang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Wenhan","family":"Ju","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xin","family":"Xin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Qiong","family":"Wang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yan","family":"Hong","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9921-5516","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Wei","family":"Le","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1625-7631","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Jinfu","family":"Zhang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"297","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,4,7]]},"reference":[{"key":"8710_CR1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"157","DOI":"10.1093\/humupd\/dmac035","volume":"29","author":"H Levine","year":"2023","unstructured":"Levine H, J\u00f8rgensen N, Martino-Andrade A, Mendiola J, Weksler-Derri D, Jolles M, et al. 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