Sperm-sperm associations in the loris epididymis.
In a few mammals, the passage of maturing spermatozoa through the epididymis is characterized by development of persistent associations between one or more neighboring cells over the acrosomal region. The converse situation is described here in the loris, Nycticebus coucang, a prosimian primate. Loris spermatozoa released at spermiation enter the caput epididymidis as single cells and then become stacked in rouleaux of 2-8 spermatozoa there, the peri-acrosomal plasmalemma of one being linked by a unique junctional complex to that of its neighbor. However, by the time the cauda is reached, all the spermatozoa have separated again to lie as single cells, which now display major aggregations of ordered material over the concave surface of the acrosome. The functional significance of these unusual sperm surface-related phenomena in the loris epididymis is not clear.
D000818:Animals; D004822:Epididymis / Q000502:physiology*; D007365:Intercellular Junctions / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008142:Lorisidae / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D011506:Proteins / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure
D011506:Proteins