Sperm

Research from UCLA’s Department of Urology shows that the semen microbiome, especially microbes like Lactobacillus iners, can influence male fertility by affecting sperm motility, opening new paths for understanding and treating male infertility. A new study finds that a small group of microorganisms may be influencing sperm motility.You may have heard about the gut microbiome and its influence on a person’s overall health and well-being. It turns out that the same may hold true for the semen microbiome.According to…

A leading expert on sperm whales has gathered the evidence and shown that the biggest-brained animals on Earth form large and complex clans with unique dialects and behaviors.Using some rough calculations based on sperm whale populations, Hal Whitehead from Dalhousie University in Canada estimates that many of these clans number in the tens of thousands.Seven clans alone live in the North Pacific, according to recent underwater acoustic data, and yet despite their shared genes, it's extremely rare for these groups to…

A study from the University Hospital Bonn reveals that a deficiency in the protein ACTL7B disrupts sperm development in male mice, leading to infertility. This protein is critical for the transformation of germ cells into mature, elongated sperm cells. Credit: SciTechDaily.comMature spermatozoa are characterized by a head, midpiece, and a long tail for locomotion. Now, researchers from the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the Transdisciplinary Research Unit “Life & Health” at the University of Bonn have found that a…

Infertility is often thought of as a female problem but one in three IVF cycles in Australia involve male infertility.We recently published a review of the literature on whether men diagnosed with male factor infertility experience greater psychological distress than fertile men or men with an infertile partner.We found irrespective of the cause of infertility, men in couples with infertility have more symptoms of depression, anxiety and general psychological distress, worse quality of some aspects of life, and lower…

Karen Hopkin: This is Scientific American’s Science, Quickly. I’m Karen Hopkin. Swimming against a current can be tough. But imagine having to do it in a fluid with the consistency of corn syrup. That’s more or less the challenge faced by mammalian sperm as they race to reach an egg. Reza Nosrati: That’s such a hard race for sperm. It’s like a very tough marathon. Hopkin: Reza Nosrati is a mechanical engineer at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia. He says that sperm are not deterred by tide or averted by…

Recent research reveals a single mutation in a critical protein structure, the synaptonemal complex, can cause male infertility. This discovery, made through gene editing in mice, opens new possibilities for understanding and treating male infertility. Scientists at Stowers Institute collaborate to discover an underlying cause of male infertility. Infertility affects countless couples globally, and in half of these cases, the problem lies with the male partner. Specifically, about 10% of these men face the challenge of…

Quirks and Quarks8:26These bats copulate for hours with enormous penises but without penetrationLet's say you saw an animal with long, powerful legs. You might reasonably think it was adapted for running fast. If it had broad, webbed paws, you'd assume it was a proficient swimmer, or if it had sharp, stabbing teeth, that it was a ferocious hunter.So what if you saw an animal with an impressively long, agile penis? That's what Nicolas Fasel saw after receiving an email he initially thought was spam because it came with the…

New research this week suggests that humanity’s war against insectkind has had some unintended consequences: declining sperm counts. The study, a review of the existing data, found a clear association between increased exposure to insecticides and lower sperm concentrations in adult men. The authors say that the evidence is strong enough to warrant new regulations that would reduce people’s exposure to these chemicals.What Inspired Dominic Monaghan's Performance in Moriarty?Several studies indicated that men’s average…

Physicians Raymond Bunge and C. M. Kinloch Nelson noticed something unusual happening at their Iowa clinic in the early 1970s: a growing number of men seeking infertility treatment. To investigate whether there might be changes in sperm in the general male population, they looked at sperm samples from 386 presumably fertile men—those seeking an elective vasectomy. Bunge and Nelson were shocked by their results: compared with men in the few studies prior, these men had lower semen volume, a higher quantity of abnormal…

Da Brat says her joke about a potential Black sperm donor was “taken way out of context.”The rapper addressed the controversy during an appearance on the Tamron Hall Show, where she and her wife, Jesseca “Judy” Dupart, shed more light on their pregnancy journey. At one point during the sit-down, Da Brat was pressed about her recent interview with The Root, in which she explained their decision to go with a white donor. The 49-year-old told the publication that the pool of viable candidates was significantly reduced after…