A novel mechanism of sperm motility in a viscous environment: Corkscrew-shaped spermatozoa cruise by spinning

Fertilization of the green tree frog, Rhacophorus arboreus, occurs in the viscous environment of a foam nest, which is laid on vegetation. Their spermatozoa have a characteristic corkscrew‐shaped head and a thick tail that extends perpendicularly to its longitudinal axis. However, it is unclear how...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Cell motility and the cytoskeleton 2009-05, Vol.66 (5), p.281-291
Main Authors: Muto, Kohei, Kubota, Hiroshi Y.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amphibian Proteins - metabolism
Animals
axoneme
Axoneme - metabolism
Cell Shape - physiology
dynein
Dyneins - metabolism
Female
Fertilization - physiology
foam nest
Male
Ranidae
Rhacophorus
sperm motility
Sperm Motility - physiology
Spermatozoa - cytology
Spermatozoa - metabolism
Viscosity
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Summary:Fertilization of the green tree frog, Rhacophorus arboreus, occurs in the viscous environment of a foam nest, which is laid on vegetation. Their spermatozoa have a characteristic corkscrew‐shaped head and a thick tail that extends perpendicularly to its longitudinal axis. However, it is unclear how these corkscrew‐shaped spermatozoa move in this highly viscous environment. Here, we found that the spinning of the corkscrew‐shaped head, caused by winding and unwinding of the tail, enables the spermatozoa to move through the highly viscous environment of a foam nest, like a corkscrew rotating into a cork. We suggested that dislocations observed in the matrix of satellite microtubules surrounding two axonemes, reflected the planes of sliding of the axonemes, and dyneins on doublets two and six of each axoneme were active during winding and unwinding, respectively. These results provide a novel mechanism for sperm movement that is adapted specifically to a viscous fertilization environment. Cell Motil. Cytoskeleton 2009. © 2009 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
ISSN:0886-1544
1097-0169
DOI:10.1002/cm.20358