Biological benefits of collective swimming of sperm in a viscoelastic fluid.

ABSTRACT: Collective swimming is evident in the sperm of several mammalian species. In bull (Bos taurus) sperm, high viscoelasticity of the surrounding fluid induces the sperm to form dynamic clusters. Sperm within the clusters swim closely together and align in the same direction, yet the clusters are dynamic because individual sperm swim into and out of them over time. As the fluid in part of the mammalian female reproductive tract contains mucus and, consequently, is highly viscoelastic, this mechanistic clustering likely happens in vivo. Nevertheless, it has been unclear whether clustering could provide any biological benefit. Here, using a microfluidic in vitro model with viscoelastic fluid, we found that the collective swimming of bull sperm in dynamic clusters provides sp

SUBMITTER: Phuyal S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9535079 | biostudies-literature | 2022

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature