Effect on sperm-immobilizing antibodies on the spontaneous and calcium-ionophore (A23187)-induced acrosome reaction.
OBJECTIVE
To study the effect of sperm-immobilizing antibodies on spontaneous and A23187-induced acrosome reactions.


METHODS
Swim-up spermatozoa obtained from a fertile donor were incubated with 16 sera containing sperm-immobilizing antibodies obtained from infertile women and 3 control sera obtained from healthy females. The acrosome loss, either occurring spontaneously or induced by 10-microM A23181, were examined by staining sperm with Pisum sativum agglutinin labeled with fluorescein isothiocyanate.


RESULTS
The incidence of the spontaneous acrosome reaction of spermatozoa incubated with anti-sperm antibodies (6.25 +/- 1.4%) was significantly (P < .001) lower than that of the spermatozoa incubated with control sera (12 +/- 0.8%). The incidence of A23187-induced and inducible (incidence of induced minus spontaneous) acrosome reactions of spermatozoa incubated with sera-positive for sperm antibodies (10.4 +/- 1.3% and 4.2 +/- 1.5%) was also significantly lower (P < .001) than that of spermatozoa incubated with control sera (30.7 +/- 0.5% and 18.7 +/- 1.2%).


CONCLUSIONS
Sperm immobilizing antibodies interfere with fertilization by inhibiting the acrosome reaction.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Akita University School of Medicine, Japan.
I
I
Tasdemir
M
M
Tasdemir
J
J
Fukuda
H
H
Kodama
T
T
Matsui
T
T
Tanaka
D000177:Acrosome / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology; D001323:Autoantibodies / Q000276:immunology / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000001:Calcimycin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000209:etiology / Q000276:immunology; D007476:Ionophores / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008297:Male; D013081:Sperm Motility / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000276:immunology* / Q000502:physiology
D001323:Autoantibodies; D007476:Ionophores; D000001:Calcimycin