Significance of timing for the postcoital evaluation of cervical mucus

Tredway, Donald R.; Settlage, Diane S. Fordney; Nakamura, Robert M.; Motoshima, Masanobu; Umezaki, Cesar U.; Mishell, Daniel R.

doi:10.1016/0002-9378(75)90018-6

Cited by 60 publications

(23 citation statements)

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“…The theory that the cervix could serve as a reservoir for sperm in some species, and that sperm may be stored in the crypts of the cervical epithelium, has been advanced for many years [Quinlan et al, 1932;Mattner, 1963;Tredway et al, 1975;reviewed in Overstreet, 19831. This idea was derived from observations of the parallel swimming of sperm in mucus stretched in vitro [Tampion and Gibbons, 1962;Mattner, 19661.…”

Section: The Cervical Mucusmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In vitro studies in bovines [Katz et al, 19811 and humans [Katz et al, 1982al demonstrated that vanguard sperm penetrating the interior of a column of mucus swim faster than following sperm, which arrive at the same location at a later time. Since the flagellar beat frequencies and shapes were not different between the vanguard and followers, it appears that the vanguard sperm had altered the mucus.The theory that the cervix could serve as a reservoir for sperm in some species, and that sperm may be stored in the crypts of the cervical epithelium, has been advanced for many years [Quinlan et al, 1932; Mattner, 1963;Tredway et al, 1975; reviewed in Overstreet, 19831. This idea was derived from observations of the parallel swimming of sperm in mucus stretched in vitro [Tampion and Gibbons, 1962; Mattner, 19661.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Factors regulating mammalian sperm migration through the female reproductive tract and oocyte vestments

1989

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Mechanisms of mammalian sperm migration through the female reproductive tract and ovum vestments are described. The perspective is biophysical as well as biochemical and morphological, and the focus is upon the role of sperm motility in these processes. Sperm forward progression is characterized as an interactive process between the the cell and its environment, and the mediation of flagellar bend propagation by the physical properties of its surroundings is described. These properties, together with flagellar beat kinematics, sperm morphology, and surface properties, determine the magnitude of the forces generated by sperm and their consequent rate of progression. Sperm interactions with the cervical mucus, the cumulus oophorus, and the zona pellucida are described. The poorly understood affinity of the sperm surface for the macromolecules of the mucus, cumulus, and zona is stressed, as is the viscoelastic structural mechanical resistance of these biopolymers to sperm motion. The kinematics and consequences of hyperactivated sperm motion are presented, with emphasis on objective characterization of such motion (as a biomarker), along with analysis of the mechanical advantage that such motion may confer on spermatozoa during egg-vestment interaction. Key words: sperm, transport, mucus, cumulus, zona pellucida, fertilization INTRODUCTIONFlagellar movement is a fundamental expression of the vitality of a sperm cell, and is essential for its reproductive function. The active mechanism of flagellar motion produces a sequence of principal and reverse bends [Gibbons and Gibbons, 1974; Woolley, 19771. These can have varying degrees of curvature and can be initiated and propagated along the flagellum at different rates. Flagellar bending results in a distribution of local forces and torques against the surrounding fluid. In accordance with Newton's Third Law, these are resisted by equal and opposite local forces and torques. In order to satisfy Newton's Second Law, the summation of the local local external forces and torques over the sperm head and tail must be zero. As a consequence, there Received November 8, 1988; accepted November 17, 1988. Address reprint requests to David F. Katz In a general biophysical sense, mammalian sperm swim optimally; the principles of hydrodynamics and optimal control theory demonstrate that the smooth flagellar traveling waves, commonly seen in low-viscosity media, tend to maximize the sperm's propulsive velocity with respect to the hydrodynamic power output (Pironneau and Katz, 1974). Mammalian sperm must use their swimming ability to reach the oocyte-cumulus complex, and the forces due to flagellar motion assist them in penetrating the egg vestments to reach the oolemma.Our studies of these processes are hampered by their complexity and by apparent variation among species. Some of this biological variation is real; for example, the site of semen deposition may be the vagina, cervix, or uterus. These environments differ not only with respect to their distance from the site of ferti...

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Section: The Cervical Mucusmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

Factors regulating mammalian sperm migration through the female reproductive tract and oocyte vestments

1989

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“…Quantitative information on the kinetics of sperm entry and residence in the cervix and cervical mucus is available for man (Sobrero & MacLeod, 1962;Tredway et al, 1975), rabbit (Morton & Glover, 1974) and ruminants (Quinlan, Mare & Roux, 1932 ;Mattner, 1963). It is generally believed that active sperm motility is an essential component of sperm transport through cervical mucus (Overstreet & Katz, 1977), and swimming speed is therefore a use¬ ful measure of sperm competency, at least in the initial phase of cervix colonization.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The movement of human spermatozoa in cervical mucus

Katz¹,

Mills²,

Pritchett³

1978

Reproduction

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Summary. Movement characteristics of freely swimming spermatozoa were studied with high-speed cinemicrography. At 21\ s=deg\ C, flagellar beat frequency was higher in midcycle human cervical mucus than in native semen or Tyrode's solution; the beat shape differed, possessing diminished amplitude and wavelength. Although the spermatozoa swam straighter in the mucus, the progressive swimming speeds did not differ in the three media. Swimming speed and beat frequency were linearly related in semen and in Tyrode, but in mucus the linearity was less certain. In midcycle cervical mucus at 37\s=deg\C, beat frequencies and swimming speeds were greater than at 21\ s=deg\ C, but the trajectories were equally straight, and the distances swum per beat (kinetic efficiencies) did not differ.

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“…Freund (1962) (van Duijn, 1962 (Atherton, Radany & Polakoski, 1978), image-analysing computers (Katz & Dott, 1975), and laser-Doppler spectrometers (Jouannet, Volochine, Deguent, Serries & David, 1977) Katz & Dott, 1975; (Katz, Overstreet & Hanson, 1980). This interval is comparable to that in which the majority of human seminal spermatozoa enter cervical mucus in vivo (Tredway et al, 1975). The seminal movement characteristics of these penetrating spermatozoa have not been specifically studied, although their morphology is known to be relatively homogeneous in vivo (Fredricsson & Bjork, 1977) and in vitro (Perry, Glezerman & Insler, 1977 …”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 87%