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CAPACITATION OF HAMSTER SPERMATOZOA IN VITRO: THE RÔLE OF CUMULUS COMPONENTS

Summary.: The capacitating action of hamster oviduct contents collected shortly after ovulation was studied in vitro and found to be restricted to the cumulus oophorus. After dispersion of the cumulus with hyaluronidase, neither the cells nor the intracellular matrix material was active alone but only in combination. Spermatozoa became attached to the cells and later eluted, undergoing capacitation in the process. An essential component was removed from the cells by washing but was regenerated on reincubation for 8 hr. Treatment of the cells with neuraminidase blocked sperm attachment and capacitation. Frozen-thawed cells could replace viable cells. Cell concentrations had to exceed 10⁴/ml to produce a high level of capacitation. Cultured bovine follicle (granulosa) cells could replace hamster cumulus cells, but more than ten times the concentration was needed. The matrix component was dialysable, heat stable and at least partially inorganic. These experiments ^{in vitro} suggest that capacitation in the oviduct is produced by an intimate association between the cumulus cell and the spermatozoon. This association depends both on sialic acid residues located on the cell surface and on one or more low molecular weight substances provided by the matrix.