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The Fertilizing Life of Spermatozoa in the Rabbit Oviduct

Wayne State University School of Medicine^,2, Detroit, Michigan 48201

Abstract

An experiment was designed to estimate the fertilizing life of spermatozoa in the rabbit oviduct. Mature, estrous rabbit does were artificially inseminated with 100 x 10⁶ spermatozoa. Six hours after insemination, one uterine horn was ligated just below the uterotubal junction, and the contralateral oviduct was ligated just above the uterotubal junction. Human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG) was administered so as to induct ovulation at approximately 10, 13, 16, or 22 hr. after insemination. At 22 hr. after the estimated time of ovulation, the rabbits were slaughtered. The spermatozoa and ova were recovered by flushing the oviduct and uterotubal junction segments of the female tract. The ova were examined microscopically and the incidence of fertilization, the number of blastomeres, and the occurrence of abnormal ova were noted. A proportion of the ova was fixed and stained with lacmoid, and the spermatozoa in and on the ova were counted.

As the interval between insemination and ovulation increased from 10 hr. to 16 hr., the fertilization rate declined sharply. This decline appears to have been due to the loss of fertilizing capacity by spermatozoa in t he oviduct. The fertilizing ability of spermatozoa seemed impaired when spermatozoa had resided in the oviducts for 13 hr. and lost when they had resided in the oviducts for 16 hours. In the group ovulating 13 hr. after insemination, a significantly greater fertilization rate was observed on the side in which the ligature had been placed below the uterotubal junction as compared with the contralateral side ligated above the uterotubal junction. as the interval between insemination and ovulation increased from 13 hr. to 16 hr., there was a significant decline in the mean number of spermatozoa attached to the ova. This decline coincided with the sharp decrease in fertilization observed during the same period. The decline in the number of spermatozoa attached to the ova may reflect both the depletion of spermatozoa in the oviducts with time and a general deterioration of the ability of aged spermatozoa to contact and perntrate ova.

It is concluded that the fertilizing lifae of spermatozoa in the rabbit oviduct is approximately 13 to 16 hours. As such, the fertilizing life of spermatozoa in the oviduct may be shorter than in other regions of the rabbit female tract.

¹ Supported by the Ford Foundation Grant No. 710-0287 and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, Grant No. HD 02634-02.

² Departments of Gynecology-Obstetrics and Physiology.