Biochemical aspects of ram sperm viability
M.T.W. van Eerten, I.T. Forrester
Department of Biochemistry, University of Otago, Dunedin
Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production.
1980, 40: 130-135
A quantitative radiochemical assay has been used to measure
Ca2+ fluxes in ejaculated ram spermatozoa. Intact motile
sperm is largely impermeable and accumulate only low levels of
Ca2+ (50-100 nmol Ca2+/109 sperm).
Exposure of the sperm to conditions which alter the plasmalemma
integrity (eg. cold shock, hypotonic media) results in a rapid and large
accumulation of Ca2+ (1200-1500 nmol
Ca2+/109 sperm). The assay has potential in
defining suitable procedures for the cryopreservation of ram semen.
Keywords: NZSAPAB;
Last Updated 12-09-1998
