in human fertilization, the sperm centrosome nucleates a radial array of microtubules called the sperm aster. the sperm aster is responsible for apposition of male and female pronuclei, and later gives rise to the first meiotic spindle. the objective of this study was to determine microtubule assembly and chromatin configuration in rabbit oocytes following intracytoplasmic injection with human ...

1.Dark-field, multiple-exposure photographs of live spermatozoa of a number of echinoderms were analysed. 2. Bends develop at the base in pairs, as they do in flagella with symmetrical waveforms. However, the angles of these bends do not cancel, so that microtubular sliding-of up to over 50% of that associated with bend propagation-is transferred distally. This sliding implies that (a) microtub...

Sperm velocity is one of the main determinants of the outcome of sperm competition. Since sperm vary considerably in their morphology between and within species, it seems likely that sperm morphology is associated with sperm velocity. Theory predicts that sperm velocity may be increased by enlarged midpiece (energetic component) or flagellum length (kinetic component), or by particular ratios b...

Sperm immobilization prior to intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) is thought to be necessary for efficient fertilization. A variety of methods of sperm immobilization (pipetting, squeezing and piezo application) are currently employed in ICSI. The effect of differences in immobilization method on the timing of initial Ca(2+) oscillations of oocytes in ICSI was investigated. Motile spermatoz...

We have dissected the initial stages of fertilization by intracytoplasmic sperm injection of single spermatozoa into prime oocytes from fertile rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta). DNA decondensation was delayed at the apical portion of the sperm head. It is possible that this asynchronous male DNA decondensation could be related to the persistence of the sperm acrosome and perinuclear theca after ...

Male factor infertility accounts for approximately 50 percent of infertile couples. The male factor-related causes of intracytoplasmic sperm injection failure include the absence of sperm, immotile sperm, immature sperm, abnormally structured sperm, and sperm with nuclear damage. Our knockout and knock-in mice models demonstrated that SEPTIN12 (SEPT12) is vital for the formation of sperm morpho...

How females store and use sperm after remating can generate postcopulatory sexual selection on male ejaculate traits. Variation in ejaculate performance traits generally is thought to be intrinsic to males but is likely to interact with the environment in which sperm compete (e.g., the female reproductive tract). Our understanding of female contributions to competitive fertilization success is ...

background: lectins the multivalent carbohydrate binding proteins are also employed to ascertain differentiation and characterization of the specific cell surface carbohydrate ligands/ receptors of different cell types including spermatozoa and posses novel biomedical importance. objective: sf50 the sialic acid specific lectin was employed on goat cauda epididymal spermatozoa to investigate its...

When a sperm and an oocyte unite upon fertilization, their cell membranes adhere and fuse, but little is known about the factors regulating sperm-oocyte adhesion. Here we explored the role of β-catenin in sperm-oocyte adhesion. Biochemical analysis revealed that E-cadherin and β-catenin formed a complex in oocytes and also in sperm. Sperm-oocyte adhesion was impaired when β-catenin-deficient oo...

Calcium in the flagellum controls sperm navigation. In sperm of marine invertebrates and mammals, Ca(2+) signalling has been intensely studied, whereas for fish little is known. In sea urchin sperm, a cyclic nucleotide-gated K(+) channel (CNGK) mediates a cGMP-induced hyperpolarization that evokes Ca(2+) influx. Here, we identify in sperm of the freshwater fish Danio rerio a novel CNGK family m...