Spermometer: electrical characterization of single boar sperm motility.
OBJECTIVE
To study single sperm boar motility using electrical impedance measurements in a microfluidic system.


METHODS
Comparison of the optical data and electrical impedance data.


METHODS
Research laboratory at a university.


METHODS
Boar semen sample were used.


METHODS
A microfluidic system is developed that is able to spatially confine single boar sperm cells and allows noninvasive analysis of their motility on the single cell level. Using this system, the single sperm motility was affected by changing the temperature or adding chemical stimuli (caffeine). The retrieved electrical impedance and video data were processed using Matlab.


METHODS
The sperm beat frequency and amplitude determined from the electrical impedance and video data.


RESULTS
The electrically measured sperm beat frequency was verified by optical analysis and in correspondence. Furthermore the microfluidic platform allowed single sperm analysis by altering the sperm by temperature and chemical stimuli.


CONCLUSIONS
This platform could be exploited as a potential tool to study sperm cells on the single cell level and to perform advanced sperm selection for intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) applications.
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
Bjorn
B
de Wagenaar
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
Daan J
DJ
Geijs
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
Hans
H
de Boer
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
Johan G
JG
Bomer
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
Wouter
W
Olthuis
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands.
Albert
A
van den Berg
BIOS - Lab on a Chip Group, MESA+ Institute for Nanotechnology and MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, University of Twente, Enschede, the Netherlands; Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre, Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Electronic address: l.i.segerink@utwente.nl.
Loes I
LI
Segerink
D000818:Animals; D002110:Caffeine / Q000494:pharmacology; D017097:Electric Impedance; D056656:Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; D008297:Male; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D055101:Semen Analysis / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D013081:Sperm Motility / Q000187:drug effects; D013094:Spermatozoa / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D034421:Sus scrofa; D013696:Temperature; D013997:Time Factors; D014741:Video Recording
D002110:Caffeine
Microfluidic platform; cell trapping; impedance sensing; single sperm analysis; sperm motility