2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report
Molecular bases for CO2 sensing in spermatozoa
| Project/Area Number |
25440169
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
Animal physiology/Animal behavior
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| Research Institution | Shimane University |
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Principal Investigator |
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| Project Period (FY) |
2013-04-01 – 2016-03-31
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| Keywords | mating behavior / promiscuity / sneaker males / reproduction / spermatozoa / glycogen |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
In squids, two types of male mating behavior are causally associated with adult body size. Males inseminate promiscuously with the same females; large “consort” males internally, and small “sneaker” males externally. Previously we found that in Heterololigo bleekeri, only sneaker spermatozoa are able to swarm, suggesting that a swarming trait might have arisen in sneakers as a “sperm cooperation” strategy among sibling sperm to compete with consorts, or as a consequence of adaptation to external fertilization. Notably, only sneaker spermatozoa inseminated long before egg spawning can be stored in the seminal receptacle. We found that they exhibited greater persistence in fertilization competence and flagellar motility than consort ones owning to larger amount of flagellar glycogen. These results, together with comparative omics analyses, suggest that postcopulatory reproductive contexts define sperm longevity by modulating the inherent energy levels and metabolic pathways.
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| Free Research Field |
生殖生物学
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