In vitro culture of brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) epididymal epithelium and induction of epididymal sperm maturation in co-culture

A medium modified from eutherian systems was used to culture epididymal epithelial cells of the brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula) for more than 2 months. Epididymal tubule fragments from the caput, corpus and cauda epididymides were used to generate cell monolayers. All three epididymal cell culture systems supported maturational changes in marsupial spermatozoa and enabled immature possum spermatozoa to differentiate from a T-shape to a streamlined shape, accompanied by the development of progressive motility after co-culture with 7-day-old cultured epididymal cell monolayers. This epididymal cell and sperm co-culture system for marsupial species may facilitate the identification of specific epithelial factors that affect sperm maturation, particularly in a species in which morphological maturation is readily visible.