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Biology of Reproduction, Vol 10, 555-564, Copyright © 1974 by Society for the Study of Reproduction

The Accumulation of Malachite Green Stainable Phospholipid in Rabbit Spermatozoa during Maturation in the Epididymis, and its Possible Role in Capacitation

J. M. CUMMINS 1, and R. J. TEICHMAN 1

1 Department of Anatomy and Reproductive Biology, University of Hawaii School of Medicine, Honolulu, Hawaii 96822


Up to 70% of live, ejaculated rabbit spermatozoa contain a phospholipid in the postacrosomal region of the head, which is specifically stabilized by fixation in glutaraldehyde containing malachite green. This MGA-material has been shown to consist predominantly of choline plasmalogen. It accumulates within the spermatozoa during the final stages of maturation in the epididymis. It does not appear to be essential to the spermatozoa for initial motility, nor for survival under aerobic, in vivo culture conditions; however, it disappears from live spermatozoa after 12 h in the estrous uterus, which suggests that it may be involved in capacitation. While the precise role of the phospholipid in sperm function remains to be elucidated, it is evident that malachite green staining adds an important new technique to the assessment of semen quality.

Accepted on October 25, 1973






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Copyright © 1974 by the Society for the Study of Reproduction.