Morphological study of boar sperm during their passage through the female genital tract. 2015

Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
Department of Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Science, International Excellence Campus for Higher Education and Research "Campus Mare Nostrum", University of Murcia, Murcia 30100, Spain.

Once deposited in the female tract, sperm face a series of challenges that must be overcome to ensure the presence of an adequate normal sperm population close to the site of fertilization. Our aim was to evaluate the influence of the uterine milieu on boar sperm morphology. In experiment 1, sperm morphology was evaluated in the backflow (60 min after insemination) and within the uterotubal junction (UTJ) (collected ~24 h after insemination) following intrauterine sperm deposition (n = 6) and compared with the morphology of the sperm in the insemination dose. In experiment 2, the influence of the uterine fluid (UF) on sperm morphological modifications was evaluated. For this purpose, ejaculated (n = 4) and epididymal (n = 4) sperm were in vitro incubated with or without UF for 2 and 24 h. In both experiments, sperm were classified as normal, having a cytoplasmic droplet (proximal or distal) or having tail defects. The results of experiment 1 pointed to an increase in morphologically abnormal sperm collected in the backflow (27.70%) and a reduction of the same in the UTJ (2.12%) compared with the insemination dose (17.75%) (P < 0.05). In experiment 2, incubation of ejaculated sperm with UF did not provoke any morphological modifications; however, when epididymal sperm were incubated with UF, a pronounced increase in the percentage of normal sperm was evident after 24 h compared with the initial dose (from 25.77% to 53.58%, P < 0.05), mainly due to distal cytoplasmatic droplet shedding (53.22 vs. 20.20%). In conclusion, almost all the sperm that colonize the UTJ had a normal morphology, with part of the abnormal sperm having been discarded in the backflow and part selected/modified on their way to the oviduct. UF seems to influence cytoplasmic distal droplet removal, as demonstrated previously in seminal plasma.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D007315 Insemination, Artificial Artificial introduction of SEMEN or SPERMATOZOA into the VAGINA to facilitate FERTILIZATION. Artificial Insemination,Eutelegenesis,Artificial Inseminations,Eutelegeneses,Inseminations, Artificial
D008297 Male Males
D003433 Crosses, Genetic Deliberate breeding of two different individuals that results in offspring that carry part of the genetic material of each parent. The parent organisms must be genetically compatible and may be from different varieties or closely related species. Cross, Genetic,Genetic Cross,Genetic Crosses
D004542 Ejaculation The emission of SEMEN to the exterior, resulting from the contraction of muscles surrounding the male internal urogenital ducts. Ejaculations
D004822 Epididymis The convoluted cordlike structure attached to the posterior of the TESTIS. Epididymis consists of the head (caput), the body (corpus), and the tail (cauda). A network of ducts leaving the testis joins into a common epididymal tubule proper which provides the transport, storage, and maturation of SPERMATOZOA.
D005187 Fallopian Tubes A pair of highly specialized canals extending from the UTERUS to its corresponding OVARY. They provide the means for OVUM transport from the ovaries and they are the site of the ovum's final maturation and FERTILIZATION. The fallopian tube consists of an interstitium, an isthmus, an ampulla, an infundibulum, and fimbriae. Its wall consists of three layers: serous, muscular, and an internal mucosal layer lined with both ciliated and secretory cells. Oviducts, Mammalian,Salpinges, Uterine,Salpinx, Uterine,Uterine Salpinges,Uterine Salpinx,Fallopian Tube,Uterine Tubes,Mammalian Oviduct,Mammalian Oviducts,Oviduct, Mammalian,Tube, Fallopian,Tube, Uterine,Tubes, Fallopian,Tubes, Uterine,Uterine Tube
D005260 Female Females
D000003 Abattoirs Places where animals are slaughtered and dressed for market. Slaughterhouses,Slaughter House,Slaughter Houses,Abattoir,House, Slaughter,Houses, Slaughter,Slaughterhouse
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D012634 Bodily Secretions Endogenous substances produced through the activity of intact cells of glands, tissues, or organs. Secretions,Bodily Secretion,Secretion,Secretion, Bodily,Secretions, Bodily

Related Publications

Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
January 1959, Fertility and sterility,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
May 1973, Biochimica et biophysica acta,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
October 2011, Theriogenology,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
May 1995, Biology of reproduction,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
October 2011, Animal reproduction science,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
March 1959, The Journal of endocrinology,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
September 1980, Journal of reproduction and fertility,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
July 2020, Theriogenology,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
January 1983, Veterinarno-meditsinski nauki,
Francisco Alberto García-Vázquez, and Iván Hernández-Caravaca, and Carmen Matás, and Cristina Soriano-Úbeda, and Silvia Abril-Sánchez, and María José Izquierdo-Rico
December 2004, Journal of insect physiology,
Copied contents to your clipboard!