This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Harrison, R. A. P. Articles by Foster, G. C. Search for Related Content PubMed Articles by Harrison, R. A. P. Articles by Foster, G. C.

Effect of ionic strength, serum albumin and other macromolecules on the maintenance of motility and the surface of mammalian spermatozoa in a simple medium

Summary. The seminal plasma in sperm suspensions from boar, bull, rabbit, ram and stallion was replaced with simple defined media as completely as possible by a combination of centrifugation through Ficoll and dilution. After this process, motility declined and the cells showed a tendency to agglutinate and/or stick to glass. Varying the ionic strength of the medium had little effect upon these parameters but sperm motility was preserved better in the presence of serum albumin. When a number of purified proteins and other macromolecules were tested individually in this way for their motility-preserving ability, bovine or human serum albumin was consistently the most effective. Defatting the albumin or altering its nature by mild reduction, oxidation or alkylation had little detectable effect on its motility-preserving ability; the protein did not appear to be acting as a chelator of metal ions, for it could not be replaced by EDTA.

The response of the spermatozoa to replacement of seminal plasma varied between species: bull spermatozoa were particularly sensitive and serum albumin had little effect upon their subsequent motility.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				M. Maccarrone, B. Barboni, A. Paradisi, N. Bernabo, V. Gasperi, M. G. Pistilli, F. Fezza, P. Lucidi, and M. Mattioli Characterization of the endocannabinoid system in boar spermatozoa and implications for sperm capacitation and acrosome reaction J. Cell Sci., October 1, 2005; 118(19): 4393 - 4404. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]