Sperm Morphology and Evaluation Flashcards
What two parts compose the head of a sperm?
- Nucleus.
- Acrosome.
What two things compose the midpiece of a sperm?
- Mitochondria.
- Annulus-terminal end.
What are the three parts of a sperm?
- Head.
- Midpiece.
- Principle piece.
What two parts compose the tail of a sperm?
- Midpiece.
- Principle piece.
How should sperm move?
By rotating in a corkscrew fashion.
What could the head of the sperm of most domestic animals be described as?
Relatively flat.
What does the plasma membrane of the sperm cover?
The entire sperm, including the tail.
When the sperm is exposed to a hypotonic solution, what should the plasma membrane do?
It should cause the tail of the sperm to curl.
What part of the sperm head is not covered by the acrosome?
The postnuclear cap.
What are the layers of the sperm head from outermost to innermost?
- Plasma membrane.
- Outer acrosomal membrane.
- Inner acrosomal membrane.
- Nuclear membrane.
What two enzymes does the acrosome contain?
- Acrosin.
- Hyaluronidase.
What is the function of acrosin?
It dissolves a hole in the zona pellucida.
What is the function of hyaluronidase?
It dissolves the hyaluronic acid in between the cumulus cells.
Does one sperm fertilize the oocyte?
No, some sperm make an opening in the cumulus, and others make an opening in the zona pellucida. This allows the sperm following behind these sets to go through both the cumulus and the zona pellucida without using up these enzymes, allowing one of those sperm to fertilize the oocyte.
What is the capitulum?
The part of the midpiece that anchors into the head of the sperm.
What is the function of the laminated columns?
Motility.
What is the function of the axoneme?
Generates movement.
What is the structure of the mitochondrial helix?
Spiral shaped.
What is the color of normal semen?
White to cream to light grey.
What does yellow semen indicate?
The presence of urine.
What does clear or thin semen indicate?
Fewer sperm.
What does pink/red semen indicate?
The presence of blood.
What is the volume of ejaculate related to?
The species.
How is the concentration of sperm measured?
Sperm/mL.
What is the gold standard for sperm concentration analysis? Why?
- A hemocytometer.
- It can be used on raw or extended sperm.
What apparatuses can measure the concentration of raw sperm only?
- Photometer.
- Fluorometer.
- Spectrophotometer.
What is an evaluation of motility also an evaluation of?
Viability.
How is motility assessed?
Visually and rounding up to the nearest 5%.
What is total motility?
All the moving sperm.
What is progressive motility?
All the sperm moving in a straight line.
Which type of motility should always be higher?
Total.
What does CASA stand for?
Computer Aided Sperm Analysis.
What is the key part of obtaining useful data from sperm analysis?
Sample preparation.
What are the morphology defects in scheme A?
Primary: Head abnormalities.
Secondary: Tail abnormalities and cytoplasmic droplets.
What are the morphology defects in scheme B?
Primary: Head abnormalities.
Secondary: Tail abnormalities.
Tertiary: Cytoplasmic droplets.
