Spermatozoa Development

From Embryology
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Introduction

Human spermatozoa (light microscope)
Human spermatozoa (electron microscope)

This page introduces spermatogenesis the development of spermatozoa, the male haploid gamete cell, produced by meiosis in the seminiferous tubules of the testis (male gonad). A second process of spermiogenesis leads to change in cellular organisation and shape before release into the central lumen of the seminiferous tubule. This overall process has been variously divided into specific identifiable stages in different species: 6 in human, 12 in mouse, and 14 in rat.

A second unique feature of this process is that during mitosis and meiosis the dividing cells remain connected by cytoplasmic bridges as the cells do not complete cytokinesis. This cellular organization is described as a syncytium, only ending with release into the central lumen of the seminiferous tubule, when the cell cytoplasm is discarded.


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Historic Embryology - Genital 
General: 1901 Urinogenital Tract | 1902 The Uro-Genital System | 1904 Ovary and Testis | 1912 Urinogenital Organ Development | 1914 External Genitalia | 1921 Urogenital Development | 1921 External Genital | 1942 Sex Cords | 1953 Germ Cells | Historic Embryology Papers | Historic Disclaimer
Female: 1904 Ovary and Testis | 1904 Hymen | 1912 Urinogenital Organ Development | 1914 External Genitalia | 1914 Female | 1921 External Genital | 1927 Female Foetus 15 cm | 1927 Vagina | 1932 Postnatal Ovary
Male: 1887-88 Testis | 1904 Ovary and Testis | 1904 Leydig Cells | 1906 Testis vascular | 1909 Prostate | 1912 Prostate | 1914 External Genitalia | 1915 Cowper’s and Bartholin’s Glands | 1920 Wolffian tubules | 1935 Prepuce | 1935 Wolffian Duct | 1942 Sex Cords | 1943 Testes Descent | Historic Embryology Papers | Historic Disclaimer

| Medicine Practical | Category:Spermatozoa | original page

Some Recent Findings

  • Redistribution of nuclear pores[1] "The appearance of an electron-lucent nuclear region surrounded by the nascent redundant nuclear envelope indicated a pathway for transporting degradation products through the nuclear pores to the residual cytoplasm. The packaging of the nuclear pores into the redundant nuclear envelope suggests that they play a role in late stages of sperm maturation or in fertilization, as most other unnecessary organelles of sperm are discarded during spermiogenesis or during shedding of the cytoplasmic droplet."
  • Calpain modulates capacitation and acrosome reaction[2] "We found that calpain-1 is relocated and translocated from cytoplasm to plasma membrane during capacitation, where it could cleave spectrin, one of the proteins of the plasma membrane-associated cytoskeleton and facilitates acrosome reaction."
  • Spermatocytes cultured in simulated microgravity[3] "A critical step of spermatogenesis is the entry of mitotic spermatogonia into meiosis. Progresses on these topics are hampered by the lack of an in vitro culture system allowing mouse spermatogonia differentiation and entry into meiosis. Previous studies have shown that mouse pachytene spermatocytes cultured in simulated microgravity (SM) undergo a spontaneous meiotic progression. Here we report that mouse mitotic spermatogonia cultured under SM with a rotary cell culture system (RCCS) enter into meiosis in the absence of any added exogenous factor or contact with somatic cells."

Seminiferous Tubule Histology

Adult Seminiferous tubule showing spermatozoa developmental stages
Seminiferous tubule cross-section and supporting cells


Spermatozoa development: primordial germ cell - spermatogonia - primary spermatocyte - secondary spermatocytes - spermatid - spermatozoa

Other main cell types seen in the histological sections

  • Sertoli cells- support cells seen within the seminiferous tubule
  • Interstitial cells or Leydig cells - produce hormone
  • Smooth muscle - surround seminiferous tubule and contribute to contraction of the tubule

Human Spermatozoa Development

  • Spermatogenesis process of spermatagonia mature into spermatazoa (sperm).
  • Continuously throughout life occurs in the seminiferous tubules in the male gonad- testis (plural testes).
  • At puberty spermatagonia activate and proliferate (mitosis).
  • about 48 days from entering meiosis until morphologically mature spermatozoa
  • about 64 days to complete spermatogenesis, depending reproduction time of spermatogonia
  • follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) - stimulates the spermatogenic epithelium
  • luteinizing-hormone (LH) - stimulates testosterone production by Leydig cells

Meiosis

Spermatozoa maturation involves two processes meiosis and spermiogenesis. After puberty, new spermatozoa continue to be generated throughout life from a spermatogonia stem cell population in the testis.

Male gametogenesis.jpg

Differences in Mammalian Meioses

Female Oogenesis Male Spermatogenesis
Meiosis initiated once in a finite population of cells continuously in mitotically dividing stem cell population
Gametes produced 1 / meiosis 4 / meiosis
Meiosis completed delayed for months or years completed in days or weeks
Meiosis Arrest arrest at 1st meiotic prophase no arrest differentiation proceed continuously
Chromosome Equivalence All chromosomes exhibit equivalent transcription and recombination during meiotic prophase Sex chromosomes excluded from recombination and transcription during first meiotic prophase
Gamete Differentiation occurs while diploid (in first meiotic prophase) occurs while haploid (after meiosis ends)


Links: Cell Division - Meiosis

Mature Human Spermatozoa

Spermatozoa animation icon.jpg Features:
  • 60 µm long, actively motile
  • divided into 3 main regions (head, neck and tail)
  • head - (flattened, 5 µm long by 3 µm wide) the nucleus and acrosome. Posterior part of nuclear membrane forms the basal plate.
  • neck - (1 µm) attached to basal plate, transverse oriented centriole, contains nine segmented columns of fibrous material, continue as outer dense fibres in tail.
  • tail - 3 parts a middle piece, principal piece and end piece
    • middle piece - (5 µm long) axonema and dense fibres surrounded by mitochondria
    • principal piece - (45 µm long) fibrous sheath interconnected by regularly spaced circumferential hoops
    • end piece - (5 µm long) axonema surrounded by small amount of cytoplasm and plasma membrane
File:spermatozoa animation icon.jpg</wikiflv> The linked animation shows an overview of key structural components of spermatozoa.

Development Animation - Spermatozoa


Male Abnormalities

Human Seminiferious Tubule - Non-obstructive azoospermia and Obstructive azoospermia

Oligospermia

(Low Sperm Count) less than 20 million sperm after 72 hour abstinence from sex

Azoospermia

(Absent Sperm) blockage of duct network

Immotile Cilia Syndrome

Lack of sperm motility

References

  1. <pubmed>20136667</pubmed>
  2. <pubmed>20716611</pubmed>
  3. <pubmed>20140225</pubmed>

Reviews

<pubmed>20388168</pubmed> <pubmed>20364093</pubmed> <pubmed>12672126</pubmed>

<pubmed>11105904</pubmed>| PDF

Articles

NCBI Bookshelf

MBoC - Sperm | MBoC - Highly simplified drawing of a cross-section of a seminiferous tubule in a mammalian testis | MBoC - Cytoplasmic bridges in developing sperm cells and their precursors

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Additional Images

Terms

asthenozoospermia

(asthenospermia) Term for reduced sperm motility and can be the cause of male infertility.

blood-testis barrier

(BTB) Formed by tight junctions, basal ectoplasmic specializations, desmosome-like junctions and gap junctions between adjacent Sertoli cells near the basement membrane of the seminiferous epithelium.

Leydig cell

(interstitial cell) Male gonad (testis) cell which secrete the androgen testosterone, beginning in the fetus. These cells are named after Franz von Leydig (1821 - 1908) a German scientist who histologically described these cells.

sperm annulus

(Jensen's ring; Latin, annulus = ring) A region of the mammalian sperm flagellum connecting the midpiece and the principal piece. The annulus is a septin-based structure formed from SEPT1, 4, 6, 7 and 12. Septins are polymerizing GTPases that can act as a scaffold forming hetero-oligomeric filaments required for cytokinesis and other cell cycle roles.

spermatogenesis

(Greek, genesis = origin, creation, generation) The term used to describe the process of diploid spermatagonia division and differentiation to form haploid spermatazoa within the testis (male gonad). The process includes the following cellular changes: meiosis, reoorganization of DNA, reduction in DNA content, reorganization of cellular organelles, morphological changes (cell shape). The final process of change in cell shape is also called spermiogenesis.

spermiogenesis

(Greek, genesis = origin, creation, generation) The maturation process of the already haploid spermatazoa into the mature sperm shape and organization. This process involves reorganization of cellular organelles (endoplasmic reticulum, golgi apparatus, mitochondria), cytoskeletal changes (microtubule organization) and morphological changes (cell shape, acrosome and tail formation).

spermatogonia

The cells located in the seminiferous tubule adjacent to the basal membrane that either divide and separate to renew the stem cell population, or they divide and stay together as a pair (Apr spermatogonia) connected by an intercellular cytoplasmic bridge to differentiate and eventually form spermatazoa.

spermatozoa head

Following spermiogenesis, the first region of the spermatozoa containing the haploid nucleus and acrosome. In humans, it is a flattened structure (5 µm long by 3 µm wide) with the posterior part of nuclear membrane forming the basal plate region. The human spermatozoa is about 60 µm long, actively motile and divided into 3 main regions (head, neck and tail).

spermatozoa neck

Following spermiogenesis, the second region of the spermatozoa attached to basal plate, transverse oriented centriole, contains nine segmented columns of fibrous material, continue as outer dense fibres in tail. In humans, it forms a short structure (1 µm). The human spermatozoa is about 60 µm long, actively motile and divided into 3 main regions (head, neck and tail).

spermatozoa tail

Following spermiogenesis, the third region of the spermatozoa that has a (head, neck and tail). The tail is also divided into 3 structural regions a middle piece, a principal piece and an end piece. In humans: the middle piece (5 µm long) is formed by axonema and dense fibres surrounded by mitochondria; the principal piece (45 µm long) fibrous sheath interconnected by regularly spaced circumferential hoops; the final end piece (5 µm long) has an axonema surrounded by small amount of cytoplasm and plasma membrane.

spermatogonial stem cells

(SSCs) The spermatagonia cells located beside the seminiferous tubule basal membrane that either divide and separate to renew the stem cell population, or they divide and stay together as a pair (Apr spermatogonia) connected by an intercellular cytoplasmic bridge to differentiate and eventually form spermatazoa.

sperm protein 56

A component of the spermatozoa acrosomal matrix released to the sperm surface during capacitation.


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Cite this page: Hill, M.A. (2024, March 28) Embryology Spermatozoa Development. Retrieved from https://embryology.med.unsw.edu.au/embryology/index.php/Spermatozoa_Development

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© Dr Mark Hill 2024, UNSW Embryology ISBN: 978 0 7334 2609 4 - UNSW CRICOS Provider Code No. 00098G