Sperm-oocyte interaction in the sea-urchin.

A study was made of the electrical and morphological changes in the sea-urchin oocyte during interaction with spermatozoa. The first event, a small step depolarization accompanied by a 20-40% decay in input resistance occurs within seconds of attachment. The evidence suggests that this electrical event is the result of sperm-oocyte fusion, and that the ion channels that lower the resistance across the oocyte-sperm complex are located in the sperm plasma membrane. This primary electrical event does not necessarily lead to sperm incorporation. A second, determinative, event occurs at 50 s, which leads to sperm entry and the formation of a cytoplasmic protrusion at the site of sperm entry. This second event probably results from the transfer of a soluble component from the spermatozoon into the oocyte cytoplasm, which leads to sperm incorporation and formation of the protrusion. The changes in the oocyte following insemination are compared with the events of egg activation.