Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2016 Nov-Dec;18(6):844-850.
doi: 10.4103/1008-682X.186880.

Importance of sperm morphology during sperm transport and fertilization in mammals

Francisco A García-Vázquez  1   2 , Joaquín Gadea  1   2 , Carmen Matás  1   2 , William V Holt  3
Affiliations
Review

Importance of sperm morphology during sperm transport and fertilization in mammals

Francisco A García-Vázquez et al. Asian J Androl. 2016 Nov-Dec.

Abstract

After natural or artificial insemination, the spermatozoon starts a journey from the site of deposition to the place of fertilization. However, only a small subset of the spermatozoa deposited achieves their goal: to reach and fertilize the egg. Factors involved in controlling sperm transport and fertilization include the female reproductive tract environment, cell-cell interactions, gene expression, and phenotypic sperm traits. Some of the significant determinants of fertilization are known (i.e., motility or DNA status), but many sperm traits are still indecipherable. One example is the influence of sperm dimensions and shape upon transport within the female genital tract towards the oocyte. Biophysical associations between sperm size and motility may influence the progression of spermatozoa through the female reproductive tract, but uncertainties remain concerning how sperm morphology influences the fertilization process, and whether only the sperm dimensions per se are involved. Moreover, such explanations do not allow the possibility that the female tract is capable of distinguishing fertile spermatozoa on the basis of their morphology, as seems to be the case with biochemical, molecular, and genetic properties. This review focuses on the influence of sperm size and shape in evolution and their putative role in sperm transport and selection within the uterus and the ability to fertilize the oocyte.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
References related to sperm morphology in different situations within the female genital tract: sperm quality before or during deposition, sperm selection during their travel within the uterus, influence of sperm morphology during the interaction with oviductal epithelial cells and fertilization.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Mattner PE. Formation and retention of the spermatozoan reservoir in the cervix of the ruminant. Nature. 1966;212:1479–80. - PubMed
    1. Kawano N, Araki N, Yoshida K, Hibino T, Ohnami N, et al. Seminal vesicle protein SVS2 is required for sperm survival in the uterus. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014;111:4145–50. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Schuberth HJ, Taylor U, Zerbe H, Waberski D, Hunter R, et al. Immunological responses to semen in the female genital tract. Theriogenology. 2008;70:1174–81. - PubMed
    1. Taylor U, Rath D, Zerbe H, Schuberth HJ. Interaction of intact porcine spermatozoa with epithelial cells and neutrophilic granulocytes during uterine passage. Reprod Domest Anim. 2008;43:166–75. - PubMed
    1. Holt WV, Fazeli A. Sperm selection in the female mammalian reproductive tract. Focus on the oviduct: hypotheses, mechanisms, and new opportunities. Theriogenology. 2016;85:105–12. - PubMed