Comparative analysis of mammalian sperm ultrastructure reveals relationships between sperm morphology, mitochondrial functions and motility.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Sperm morphology mainly refers to the shape of the head, the length of the flagellar segments, including the midpiece, principal piece and end piece, and the size of the accessory structures, including axonemes, outer dense fibers (ODFs), mitochondrial sheath (MS) and fibrous sheath (FS). Across species, there is considerable diversity in morphology. An established theory posits that the length of the sperm flagellum, especially the length of the midpiece, is a critical factor influencing sperm metabolism and velocity. However, our understanding of the relationships between sperm ultrastructures and the sperm flagellar length is incomplete.

Methods

The morphologies of sperm from 10 mammalian species, human, mouse, rat, dog, rabbit, goat, pig, bull, guinea pig and

SUBMITTER: Gu NH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6696699 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature