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Molecular Human Reproduction Vol. 2, NUMBER 12 pp. 903-909, 1996
© European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology 1996

research-article

Involvement of osmo-sensitive calcium influx in human sperm activation

M. Rossato1, F.Di Virgilio2 and C. Foresta1,3

1Patologia Medica III, University of Padova Via Ospedale Civile 105, 35128 Padova 2Institute of General Pathology, University of Ferrara Via Borsari 46, 44100 Ferrara, Italy

To whom correspondence should be addressed at: 3To whom correspondence should be addressed

Mammalian spermatozoa must undergo capacitation and acrosome reaction before fertilization. To date, the precise mechanisms regulating these complex processes are not well understood but it is generally agreed that they involve an influx of calcium from the extracellular space through, as yet, poorly characterized plasma membrane pathways. Here we present evidence for a novel mechanism to increase intracellular calcium concentration via a calcium influx pathway activated by sperm cell swelling. Activation of this influx pathway by a mild hypo-osmotic shock and the ensuing calcium rise are a potent stimulus for sperm acrosome reaction. Furthermore, hypo-osmolarity-activated spermatozoa are fully competent for oocyte fertilization. During transit along male and, after ejaculation, female genital tracts spermatozoa are known to be exposed to extracellular fluids of widely different osmolarity; thus osmo-sensitive calcium influx could have a crucial regulatory role in the cellular events preceding fertilization.

acrosome reaction/calcium/human/spermatozoa/stretch-activated channels


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