Spermatozoa of the Atlantic bottlenosed dolphin, Tursiops truncatus.
Semen from a male dolphin in captivity was collected by electro-ejaculation and frozen to -176 degrees C. Sperm motility was excellent after thawing 10 days later. Electron microscopy showed 14-16 parallel ridges in the post-acrosomal region and two types of mitochondria in the mid-piece. The spermatozoa were capable of fusing with zona-free hamster eggs only after preincubation for 2 h, suggesting the need for sperm capacitation and acrosome reaction before fertilization in this species.
D000818:Animals; D004289:Dolphins / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008297:Male; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D012662:Semen Preservation; D013075:Sperm Capacitation; D013084:Sperm-Ovum Interactions; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000648:ultrastructure*