Eighteen semen samples were collected from 18 normospermic men. Two aliquots (1 mL) were prepared from each ejaculate, washed with Ham's F-10, and each washed sperm pellet was reconstituted in 2 mL volume of Ham's F-10 medium. Each aliquot one was stained using the AO-staining method. Each aliquot two was filtered via the SpermPrep II method, and the recovered spermatozoa were stained similarly...

Part of the reduction in boar sperm motility and fertility associated with hypothermic liquid storage and cryopreservation may be due to membrane lipid peroxidation. Lipid peroxidation was monitored by the shift from red to green fluorescence emission of the lipophilic probe 4, 4-difluoro-5-(4-phenyl-1,3-butadienyl)-4-bora-3a,4a-diaza-s-indacene-3-undecanoic acid, C11BODIPY (BODIPY), as measure...

An isolated surface complex consisting of the vitelline layer, plasma membrane, and attached secretory vesicles has been examined for its ability to bind sperm and to form the fertilization envelope. Isolated surface complexes (or intact eggs) fixed in glutaraldehyde and then washed in artificial sea water are capable of binding sperm in a species-specific manner. Sperm which bind to the isolat...

Peroxidation of the sperm cells’ own phospholipids, closely bound up with declining motility, has been demonstrated in human spermatozoa; the rate of peroxidation was determined quantitatively by the reaction with thiobarbituric acid. Immotile or poorly motile spermatozoa from necrospermic or oligospermic semen exhibited a higher rate of peroxidation than highly motile spermatozoa from normal e...

We designed prospective studies to compare manual and computerized analysis of sperm morphology by strict criteria using different semen processing and staining techniques. A total of 54 semen samples were studied; slides were prepared from each subject from liquefied semen and after washing, and stained with Diff-Quik or Papanicolaou. An intra-laboratory, blind assessment was performed manuall...

The mammalian spermatozoon has many cellular compartments, such as head and tail, permitting it to interact with the female reproductive tract and fertilize the egg. It acquires this fertilizing potential during transit through the epididymis, which secretes proteins that coat different sperm domains. Optimal levels of these proteins provide the spermatozoon with its ability to move to, bind to...

Objective: Mammalian spermatozoa swell under hypotonic conditions. The exposure of spermatozoa to isotonic conditions after exposure to hypertonic conditions during cryopreservation results in the occurrence of osmotic shock, which is characterized by coiling of the distal end of the sperm tail. The objective of this study was to assess the effects of osmotic shock (% sperm coiling) on human cr...

Background: Super-paramagnetic annexin-V conjugated micro-beads are able to eliminate sperm with phosphatidylserine externalization (PSE). PSE is considered as apoptotic sperm. PES positive sperm can be removed from sperm preparations sample to enhance sperm quality for assisted medical procreation. Therefore, the efficiency of this technique over normal sperm processing procedure such as densi...

Binder of SPerm (BSP) proteins are a family of proteins expressed exclusively in the male reproductive tract (seminal vesicles or epididymis) of several mammalian species. They are known to promote capacitation, a sperm maturation step essential for fertilization. Our recent studies have shown that in human, the Binder of SPerm Homolog 1 (BSPH1) is expressed solely in epididymal tissues. The go...

The gender of the offspring is determined by the fertilizing sperm. Previous gender studies were based on washed sperm, but not on sperm in seminal plasma. The objective was to correlate motility parameters assessed during semen analyses with the offspring gender. For comparison, fixed sperm head DNA quantitated by Hoechst 33342 fluorescence microscopy was also analyzed. Forty-six patients unde...