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Glass-bead columns were tested for their efficiency in concentrating motile human spermatozoa from frozen semen samples. The data show that glass-bead filtration concentrates the motile gametes in each sample and is significantly more efficient than the swim-up method for obtaining populations of motile spermatozoa. The data suggest that this method can be applied clinically to obtain motile spermatozoa from poor-quality semen for use in in vitro fertilization.

Glass-bead columns have been used to separate mouse spermatozoa into motile and nonmotile fractions. The spermatozoa in the motile fraction are able to fertilize eggs in vitro. Significantly more of the two-cell embryos which develop from these zygotes reach the blastocyst stage than do two-cell embryos developing from eggs fertilized in vitro with unfiltered control spermatozoa.

A comparative light and electron microscopy study was done on cauda epididymal spermatozoa obtained from correspondingly-aged sterile t6/tw32, and fertile T/tw32, T/t6 and BALB/c, mice. The results show that all of the males, regardless of age, contained defective gametes and that all contained the same types of aberrant gametes. The oldest males of each genotype contained more abnormal gametes than the younger males of the same genotype. No unique spermatozoan defect and no increased frequency of a specific spermatozoan defect was noted which could be correlated with the sterility of the t6/tw32 animals.

The results from a comparative ultrastructural study of spermiogenesis in 6-, 10-, 14- and 17-month-old sterile t6/tw32, and fertile T/t6, T/tw32 and BALB/c, mice are reported. The studies show that all of the males contained the same types of defective spermatids and that defects were not limited to specific spermatid stages. Younger males had fewer abnormal spermatids than older males of the same genotype and at each age the BALB/c and t6/tw32 males appeared to contain more abnormal spermatids than the other males. No unique spermatid defect or increased frequency of a specific defect was found which can be correlated with infertility of the t6/tw32 males.

A comparative light and electron microscopic study was done on cauda epididymal spermatozoa from +/tx, T/+, T/tx, C57BL/6J, BALB/c and randomly breeding Swiss Albino mice. The results show that all of the males contain abnormal spermatozoa and that all contain the same types of defective gametes. No unique defect was found which can be correlated with the increased transmission frequency of the tx-bearing allele.

Spermatozoa from sterile t6/tw32 and control fertile +/+, T/tw32, T/t6 mice were compared for their abilities to hydrolyse protein matrices and for their levels of acrosin activity. The data show that the immature and mature gametes from both the experimental and control males hydrolyse protein matrices. The quantitative acrosin assays show, however, that the mature gametes from the intercomplement males have significantly less total acrosin activity than any of the control groups of gametes. These findings suggest that this reduced acrosin activity is an additional phenotypic expression of the intercomplement genotype which results in male sterility.