Structural and rheological properties conferring fertilization competence to Xenopus egg-coating envelope.

ABSTRACT: The extracellular egg-coating envelope that comprises a meshwork of filaments polymerized by glycoproteins plays a pivotal role in species-selective sperm recognition and subsequent fertilization; however, the structural and rheological properties conferring fertilization competence to the egg-coating envelope remain poorly unveiled. Here we show several nanoscale-structural and viscoelastic properties of the egg-coat using the transmission electron microscopy and the quartz crystal microbalance experiments, following clamp of the egg-coat at either fertilization-competent or -incompetent statuses by short-term pretreatment with synthetic peptides. Individual filament of approximately 4.8 nm diameter crossed one another, forming several types of intersections. Higher competence-inducing tr

SUBMITTER: Hanaue M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5515883 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature